Kurt's Turn
by Captain-Nightcrawler
Summary: Everyone else got exposed as a mutant to Bayville.. why didn't they expose Kurt as his blue fuzzy self? Well... I wrote my own! And I do intend on completing it! Enjoy! CHAPTER 10 IS UP!
1. Chapter 1

**Kurt's Turn:**

**This is my first fanfiction in a long time. I read them on this site all the time, and I love Kurt. I used to write them all the time when I was in the sixth grade, but I never posted them or kept any of them. They were crappy anyway haha. Well I do intend on writing many more chapters for this fanfic and I hope you enjoy it! If you don't like it, then don't read it and please don't send me any rude comments. And if I got any of the characters out of their cartoon character, I don't really care. It's my little world and just to be safe.. I don't own any of the characters... yet and you all know Kurt has a German accent, just imagine it in your minds. It's easier for me to write without the "VHATS?" and "VHERES?" haha**

**Anyway, Enjoy!...**

**Kurt's Turn**

They were on the homestretch of finishing high school. No one thought it was possible after the exposure of the Xavier institute and that mutant teenagers were attending Bayville High School with human teenagers. High school is a deadly jungle itself for "normal" people let alone for a mutant. It was a miracle that all the Xavier kids knew but no one seemed to have spoken it to each other. All the mutants had been exposed to Bayville. Their names and their powers displayed to the public through the newspapers and local television stations.

But all of that was in the past. It had been a little over a year since they had been ridiculed and the damage to the Xavier institute had been repaired and life in Bayville was almost as it was before any of the disturbances had ever happened. The hype at school had died down, except here and there when someone would choose to make a snide comment to any of the Xavier or Brotherhood students about their powers. But who cared? The now grade twelve Xavier students were graduating, which Kurt and Kitty were both a part of.

**April:**

It was mid April. The temperatures were creeping up the thermometer every day, but a steady rain would fall every few days making it difficult to actually enjoy the warm weather. However the "April Showers" were setting a soothing aura upon Bayville gradually making the trees bud, the grass greener and the strange fresh scent of rain in the humid air was enough to make anyone feel calmed and reassured that summer would be coming soon.

"I love spring!" Kitty said as she took in a deep breath of the crisp temperate air.

"Spring began in March in case you forgot."

"Ha he he... you're hilarious. I meant when it actually starts to feel like spring."

Kurt and Kitty were enjoying a sunny Tuesday afternoon sitting on Kurt's balcony that overlooked the lake getting some homework done.

"Yeah, I just wish it was nicer outside…" Kurt said as he grimaced up at the late afternoon sun.

Kitty seemed mildly shocked and confused.

"What the hell do you mean? It's been raining the past few days and we finally have a beautiful sunny day!"

Kurt's blue holographic eyes reflected dully in the sun before he held a hand up to shade his eyes and he sighed and shrugged, "There's a cloud right over there!"

Kitty's confused and furrowed brow slowly smoothed and her lips curled up into a closed mouth smile at the comment. Kurt sensed her smile and his eyes turned to catch a glimpse of Kitty's face that he had become irrevocably in love with during his years at the institute. He especially adored her smiles. Kurt, being the constant joker he was, always stepped it up a notch when he was in her presence just to see her cheeks bubble under her eyes as her petal soft lips would slowly curl up into a closed mouth smile before she showed her flawless teeth.

"Why do you have to make stupid comments like that all the time?"

"Excuse me fräulein Kitty, but I actually need to finish my homework before tomorrow… I don't have time for your little games and stupid comments about how crappy this beautiful day is." Kurt's face looked so serious, although it was all in pure fun, and he awkwardly picked up his pencil in his holographic hands that made him look like he was constantly giving some kind of Star Trek nerd sign.

Kitty smiled one of her little smiles and went back to her sociology homework. A comfortable silence had passed as Kitty glanced up here and there to watch the image of the "human" Kurt look from his binder to his textbook to his calculator.

"Kurt."

"What?"

"Why do you have your inducer on?"

Kurt didn't even stop to look at Kitty. He just kept working on his calculus questions.

"Force of habit I guess."

"Well you'd probably conserve a lot of the battery if you didn't wear it around the institute."

"I don't wear it _that_ much. Besides," he looked at her "I charge it every night."

"Isn't it uncomfortable?"

Kurt had looked down at his work again and Kitty tapped her pen on her book as she waited for a reply. Kurt's head finally perked up and he stared up at the sky.

"Why would it be uncomfortable? It's just like wearing a watch."

"Well I don't know. It's like how whenever I come home from school I just go and put on some comfy clothes."

"Why don't you just wear comfortable clothes to school?"

"Because they don't look as nice. And I'm pretty sure everyone else does the same thing."

"It's honestly not that big of a deal and I'm honestly not that uncomfortable. And besides, I thought random questions were only to be asked by me."

"What do you do with your tail?"

_Tail_. A word Kurt hated to hear. He didn't know why, but although all of his other physical mutations did bother him, for some reason that animal-like appendage disturbed him the most. It made him feel as far from being human as he could. Although he hid it well, whenever he heard that word, he could swear his blood was boiling. It was almost as if he thought if he ignored it, then no one else would think about it either. But that was just him being hopeless.

A brief awkward silence fell over them. Kitty had blurted out that last question without even thinking and it was obvious that she had hit a nerve.

"Like I said," Kurt's voice broke a bit at the end "I thought I was supposed to ask the random questions."

Kitty decided to play along with Kurt's attempt at turning her foolishness into a joke.

"I'm sorry, you're right. I'll save the random questions for you."

With that, Kitty forced a smile to spread across her face and hoped like hell that he bought it. Kurt returned a small smile in her favor and they continued working as Kitty filled up any silent void with mindless drabble which Kurt would politely contribute to.

Time passed on and Kurt was getting ready for bed. He closed his bedroom door behind him as he walked to his dresser. Pushing his left sleeve up, Kurt admired the porcelain skin that stared back up at him. It looked so soft and real but as Kurt touched it he felt the fur that was always there. After a moment of staring at what could be his arm, he pushed down the button and removed the watch exposing his furry blue wrist. Clenching his hand then releasing it, he put the watch in the cradle of the charger and opened the drawers to put on his sleep clothes. All Kurt slept in was a pair of lounge pants with a hole cut in the back and any old t-shirt. He slipped them on and pulled his tail through the hole and glanced up at his mirror as his true image stared back at him. He thought to himself:

_I'll tell you why I don't take my watch off. If I can look_

_as human as that inducer can make me look, then I'll do it for _

_as long as I can._

With that, Kurt sighed and walked over to his bed, turned out the light and just like every other night, wished that would be the last time he would have to look back at that refection...

**Well, there it was, the first chapter of my first fan fiction on this site! YAY! If you liked what you read I have more coming! Stay in touch!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for the reviews**

**Thank you for the reviews! And I have edited the thoughts to italics. Originally on my Microsoft Office I had them in the centre of the page but it didn't transfer to the website, but the italics look better anyway (thank you allyg1990)! Well, here is the second chapter! And who knows, maybe Kurt will cry in the future (for dvid0703) I haven't decided yet. But I do plan on making this a fairly long fanfic! I hope I don't let anyone down!**

**P.S. It's still April and this chapter isn't the best because it's mainly filler leading up to the good stuff. (Introductions to characters that might play big/small parts later, etc) I know it isn't fun, but I need it and it will all tie in later. Haha.**

**Try to Enjoy!...**

Chapter 2:

Kurt moaned as he rolled over to glare at the glowing red numbers reading 6:45 that seemed to taunt him to the sound of the booming early morning radio voices.

_I can't wait until summer holidays when I don't have a specified time to be up!_

Kurt pushed the covers off his exhausted body, yawned, and stretched every limb, even his tail. He looked over to the balcony doors that were shaded by long white gossamer curtains. A little bit of early morning pink light seeped through the bottom of the blinds indicating another sunny day. Perfect.

Dragging himself out of bed, he grabbed a towel from his closet, ported to the men's room, stepped into an empty shower stall where he turned on the warm water and washed. Another aspect of his life that jeered at him: showering. Instead of "normal" people who washed their bodies with soap, Kurt used shampoo on every inch of his malformed body to keep his fur clean. How could that reassure you that you're not that different? Showering was just a mindless procedure that he and everyone did, but these past few months had made it especially harder for Kurt. Nothing could be hidden from his view. His entire "deformed" body was uncovered almost to remind him what he was. Ever since the "mutant scandal" all the Xavier students seemed to be reminded that they were different.

Everyone had been exposed as a mutant. He had watched as all his friend's faces were shamefully displayed over newspapers and the television. He even acted as a bystander when all of his friends were teased and victimized by the human students, while his identity remained unknown. Eventually he had realized the error of his ways and revealed himself as a mutant to the public, but unlike the rest of the Xavier students and the members of the Brotherhood, he still had another secret to his mutation that was being kept undisclosed.

Every morning Kurt would wonder when it would happen, or if it would happen. Would he be able to survive his entire high school years without the human population of Bayville High ever knowing his best kept secret? All he could do was hope and pray, which he did every day.

He finished up his shower and ported to his room. There, he dressed and grabbed his image inducer, strapped it to his furry wrist and turned it on. Masking his appearance and his heart.

From there he ported down to the kitchen. Kurt's stomach was a bottomless pit. He could eat anything at any time and a lot of it.

"Good morning Kurt. How are you?" Ororo's deep, smooth voice cooed as she walked in the kitchen holding a cup of coffee in her slender bronze hand.

"Guten tag. I'm just lovely, as always. And you?"

_What a lie._

"I'm very well, thank you." Ororo chuckled. "I don't know how you maintain such a positive attitude, Kurt. You certainly do set a good example for the other students here."

"How do you figure?" Kurt muffled his sentence as he stuffed a piece of toast into his mouth before he even finished swallowing a muffin.

"Well, a lot of the students here, especially the young ones, are still dealing with the changes and their mutations. It's not easy, but you just seem show that it isn't impossible to overcome."

"Well, it's not as easy as it looks. Believe me."

"I'm sure of that. But you've only got a little over two months left of school. You've come this far, I don't think much could sink you now."

"It better not! I may not show it, but I'm pretty heavy and I'm not the best swimmer, you know."

Ororo let out a lighthearted laugh, "Go to school. I'll see you when you get home."

"Auf Wiedersehen." Kurt said, throwing his backpack over his shoulder. He grabbed another muffin and bamfed to the garage.

That day was very much like the day before. Although it was still early in the morning, just by looking at the sky, you'd know it was going to be another nice day. The sky was a radiant shade of pink; the sun a brilliant orange colour peeking behind random patches of lavender clouds. Kurt stopped shortly to admire the beauty of the morning sky before he was interrupted by something even more appealing.

"Kurt! You're not driving today, are you?

Depending on the weather, Kurt and Kitty usually drove to school. They would take turns, depending on who wanted to drive the most.

"No. Why?" Kurt playfully hid his ring of keys behind his back and watched as Kitty's face lifted into her heart-stopping smile topped off with a musical little chuckle.

"I was hoping we could walk, silly. It looks so beautiful outside, and I want to enjoy it."

Kurt swore his heart had stopped. He began to feel a little weak in the knees, which made him wonder if he would physically be able to walk to school without looking like a fool. The blood rushed back into his face, and for a rare moment, he was thankful that his holowatch was able to mask his face turning, in his case, dark blue.

"Umm… okay… sure, why not!"

"Perfect, then put your keys away." Kitty smiled again.

They walked down the cement path towards the gates of the mansion that lead to the street talking about school and other trivial teenage banter. Kurt let Kitty do most of the talking. He was too caught up in Kitty's exquisiteness that seemed to fit perfectly with the surroundings of the picturesque morning. He watched how the sun reflected off Kitty's china blue eyes. The grass was still sprinkled with early morning dew sending a million little sparkles off the lawn that surrounded the driveway. Kurt was in silent awe of her captivating splendor. Her usually auburn hair looked as if it had golden highlights from the suns luminous rays. Her face was a soft, pale, peach colour that harmonized how soft her skin actually was, and her rounded face was topped off with full, apricot coloured, pouting lips.

Kurt thought to himself:

_God broke them all when He made her… He must have made me with what was left over._

Another one of those comfortable silences passed as they continued on their trip to school. Kitty was the first, as always, to break it.

"Got any plans for the weekend?"

"Me?"

"No, that squirrel in the bushes. Yeah, you."

"First of all touché for the Kurtism. Secondly, I don't have any plans. I'll probably just do any homework that I'll probably get swamped with on Friday."

"What makes you think you'll get stuck with a load of homework?"

"I have ever since I started this semester. I swear, during the switch between semesters all the teachers went to a meeting and decided that all mutant students were to get double the homework. It's ridiculous."

"I can't say I've been swamped too much on the weekends."

"Really? Maybe it's just the male mutants."

"Or, maybe it's all in your head."

Kurt looked over at Kitty and couldn't help but smile when he saw her good-natured expression.

"Probably. What about you? What are you doing Miss. Populaire?" Kurt added extra emphasis on the last word, even making it sound French; due to how little of an impact the whole mutant affair seemed to have had on Kitty's social life.

"I'm not too sure. I think a few friends were planning on going to Rock and Bowl on Friday night."

"What friends?"

Kitty looked up at him with a puzzled expression on her face.

"What do you mean 'What friends'? I have friends outside of the mansion you know!"

"No! No, I didn't mean it that way! I meant 'what friends' like: who. You know? Like, 'Oh what group of friends are you going with'. Get it?"

Kitty let out a short little giggle and then smiled at how nervous Kurt had been at the thought of him offending her.

"What's so funny?"

"Kurt, it's not that big of a deal. And to answer your question, I'm going with my school friends Amy, Courtney and Dana. I had asked Rogue to join us but she and Amy don't see eye to eye."

"I see."

"Do you want to come seeing as you haven't got anything better to do?"

_Is she stupid? I'm not going to risk anything when I've gone this far without a slip up._

"I'll think about it."

"Oh come on! You never go out anywhere unless it's with mansion people. You'll have fun!"

"I said I'd think about it."

"Fine, but the offer is still on the table."

"Are you sure you want to put it there? I'll probably eat it."

"Just know that you're more than welcome to join us."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Time had passed again with more small chit chat as Kurt and Kitty finally made it to school. The sun had risen since they left the mansion turning from its brilliant shade of orange to more of a golden burst of light in the now faded pink and pale blue sky. They walked through the courtyard of the school where Kitty had spotted a group of her friends waving at her. Kitty grabbed Kurt's hand.

"Come on."

"No, Kitty. The bell is going to ring any second and my locker is all the way on the other side of the school from my first period class."

Kitty's expression dropped a bit but then she smiled.

"Alright, well thanks for walking with me."

"Any time. I'll see you at lunch."

Kitty watched as Kurt waved before turning towards the doors of the school. She knew they could relate in a way with keeping a discomforting secret. She had lived for three years with the secret of her mutation to the entire school staying very cautious and always on alert as not to expose herself to anyone. She could only imagine how Kurt felt. He was almost as bad as Rogue. With Rogue at least she didn't mind covering herself up and giving off a vibe that she didn't want to be touched through her gothic image. But Kurt was such a personable individual. Although Rogue had to be cautious more than anyone else, she at least didn't have more mutation to hide from everyone. The human students were aware that her power was absorption and they were warned not to touch her bare skin. No one was warned about Kurt.

Kitty had so many stupid questions in her mind about how Kurt got through the day without any mistakes and how he did every day things. She wondered, like she had asked the day before, what he did with his tail. She knew from personal experience that that tail of his had a mind of its own. Where did he put it so it didn't fling out? How did he manage to make his posture seem upright like everyone else when in reality he was hunched over? How did he manage not to let anyone make contact with his fur? And how would she ask those questions without offending him?

_Those are stupid questions anyway. I don't want to hurt his feelings. He's my best friend! I shouldn't even be thinking them!_

"Kitty!" a voice called.

"Coming!"

Kurt walked through the hallways to his locker. He kept his eyes focused on empty space in front of him ignoring any eye contact with anyone else, human and mutant alike. Usually he would make the effort to look at people and smile, but Kitty did hit a nerve the day before and he didn't feel like it.

_Thank God for long sleeves._

Kurt always wore long sleeves to school. Even during the warmer months. He would rather be hot than worry if someone was going to brush up against his bare arm and feel his fur instead of the skin of a normal arm. At some times Kurt was thankful for certain aspects of his mutation. His hearing for example, was like that of a cat's. His pointed ears made it easy for him to hear acute noises giving him catlike reflexes. He could weave in and out of the sea of people in the hallways without making any unwanted contact. Here and there his covered arms would brush up against someone, but his inducer had the image of a long sleeved shirt, so they didn't think anything of it. But then again Kurt thought:

_I wouldn't need sensitive hearing if I didn't have to worry about touching anyone._

He got to his locker, put away his bag, grabbed his books and headed for class. The bell rang and Kurt arrived at his class in perfect time; English class. Thankfully his English teacher, Mr. Butler had the class' seating arrangement in alphabetical order, thus having Kurt sit in the far back corner beside a window, which he loved. Mr. Butler was a strong but caring man who didn't seem at all affected by the revealing of mutants to the school. He was in his mid thirties with short dark brown hair, a harshly featured face covered with tanned skin. He made English a comfortable place for Kurt to be in by almost never calling on him to answer any questions. Not because of Kurt being a mutant, but because Mr. Butler knew English was Kurt's second language, which Kurt found as a good excuse not to pay attention.

As the class proceeded, Kurt, like many other days, gazed out the window. He remembered how he grew up looking out windows in his home in Germany. Most of his life was spent secluded and cooped up inside his home hidden from society. None of his neighbours or even his parent's friends knew about him and the only family he had ever known was his parents and his grandparents from his father's side. He had missed out on so much due to the tremendous, unwanted attention he would draw to himself in public because of the body he was "cursed" with. He had never attended a real school until he moved to Bayville to live with the professor when he was fifteen. He never even had any friends his own age let alone had any kind of communication with anyone other than his family. He wasn't even allowed outside in the daytime incase someone saw him. His only access to the outside world in daylight was through a large window in his parent's bedroom. At night, he was free to go outside.

Kurt just stared and thought about everything. He never really used to think about his mutations that often. It wasn't until the world, especially Bayville, had been fully informed about the existence of mutants. Bayville seemed to be "mutant city" due to the Xavier institute, so Bayville High had become a scarier place for mutants now that their secret was out. First it was a secret so nobody would be frightened or hurt, then it became so nobody got expelled. Kurt could only imagine the consequence for covering an appearance as extravagant as his. Principal Kelly had put out a new school law that any mutant who used their powers was to be punished according to the extremity of their ways, and any mutant who failed to mention what they were, was to be rejected their education at Bayville High. Even though all those changes had been made to ensure the human population attending schools with mutants would be safe, Kurt just didn't think about it that much. Why did Kitty have to make those comments the day before? All it did was send a flurry of unwelcome superfluous thoughts through his head. But he couldn't deny that he was crazy about her.

Kurt's other classes went by uneventful. Nothing really interesting happened and all Kurt could wait for was lunch for two reasons. One: he was starving. Two: Kitty. Physics was what Kurt had before lunch. The clock ticked and Kurt watched as the minutes passed and finally read twelve ten indicating lunch hour. Kurt grabbed his books and almost flawlessly passed through the busy hallways to his locker without touching a single person. But he still managed to gain some unwanted attention.

"Does anyone know about blue-boy yet?" Pietro asked to the other members of the Brotherhood.

Pietro, Todd, Lance, Blob and Tabitha were standing in the hallway. Pietro was leaning against a locker with his arms folded across his chest. Todd was on his hands and knees looking under a water fountain for some extra change. Blob was standing beside Pietro and Lance while Tabitha leaned her hip against the water fountain.

Todd looked down the hall as Kurt reached his locker.

"I dunno. Why do you care?"

"Let me ask you this. Do you feel justified that all of us and the little X-nerds have been exposed and he hasn't?"

"No…"

"Exactly!"

Lance spoke up.

"Who cares, Pietro? Does it really matter?"

"You're only standing up for him because you little pretty Kitty is friends with that blue wad of fuzz."

"No it isn't. I don't care about her. I just don't see the point. We get it. He's a mutant; does everyone need to know the rest?"

"I can't believe what I'm hearing! Have you gone soft? You always used to go on and on about how you couldn't wait to give that blue furred freak his due."

Lance still had feelings for Kitty and even if she didn't have any for him, he still tried to avoid anything that would potentially hurt her and he knew Kurt was a good friend to her.

"Actually, Pietro. I think that was me." Todd's crassly voice interrupted.

"Regardless, it isn't fair. And we need to bring some justice to Bayville High. Besides, Tabby, what was their stupid little motto? Aren't they a team or something stupid like that?"

"Something along those lines."

"Well then if all of them have been revealed, then all of them will be."

"Yeah! There is no "I" in team!" Blob dimwittedly chortled.

Tabitha looked at him disgustedly and shook her head.

"You're so stupid. And Pietro, I'm with Lance. Is there any point risking our asses just to expose Kurt?"

"Yeah, we're already on the verge of expulsion."

"Well, you two can sit back and join the sidelines then. He will be revealed before graduation. Mark my words."

**Well, chapter two is done. Like I said, it was mainly filler and just information based. Don't give up on me just yet! I promise you're going to get into it from the next chapter on! Read and Review! :) No hate though. (Chapter Three coming very soon)**


	3. Chapter 3

Well, I'm back

**Suspenseful! Well, I'm back. I hope I didn't disappoint anybody with that last chapter. Thank you for all the wonderful reviews and implications! I do read all of them and take your suggestions into consideration. For one, yes I do plan on incorporating more characters (ie. Scott, Jean, etc). I do know that Scott, Jean, Rogue, Kitty and Kurt and all of them aren't all the same age/grade but for my fanfic (sorry for anyone who gets mad at this) they are all in grade twelve-ish. If it makes any difference, they're not all 18. Some are still 17 (turning 18), some are 18 and some, like Jean and Scott, are in Grade 12x/13(which is an optional year where I am from and yes I do realize the irony haha) and they are 19. I'll clarify in this chapter. I actually should have mentioned some more characters earlier and maybe stated where everyone was in terms of school. Please accept my utmost apologies******** (Anony.Lover, and Pietro is the ultimate jackass isn't he? Haha). And thank you for all the suggestions! I do have my own ideas, but reading other ones are good too and sometimes I change what my original idea was because I like your ideas better. **

**P.S. I know Evan is supposed to be with the Morlocks but I brought him back (remember it's my world… he was being a baby with them anyway haha Kurt looks different and did he join them? NO! muhahaha) Sorry.. haha got a little carried away there. And as you said, JCRobin, the plot thickens. And for GIZMAC, who knows how it will go down? Haha :P!! And thank you again to allyg1990 for the italics bit. And same thing for the accent go with Rogue. It's easier for me to write without it, and you all know what she sounds like. And I'm sorry for any die-hard Catholics, but I did do a little bit of God questioning. Just a little bit but if I offend anybody in any way, please know this is just a fanfiction and I am very sorry.**

**Well I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I am writing it! :)...**

Chapter 3:

Kurt made his way to the cafeteria. As he walked through the doors he scanned the large room for Kitty. Sure enough, she was sitting at the usual "mutant table" which consisted of Kitty, Rogue, Jean, Scott, Evan, and himself. Depending on Kitty's mood, she would either sit with the other Xavier students or with her other group of friends. Kurt was thankful that Kitty would be joining them that day. His heart almost exploded in his chest when their eyes met and she gestured for him to come over.

"Hey man."

Kurt jumped a bit as the sound of Evan's voice brought him back down to earth.

"Hey!"

"Are you okay?" Evan laughed.

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, considering we're in the cafeteria and its lunchtime and you're not running to get to the front of the line..."

"Oh," Kurt chuckled, "I slept like crap last night so my head's not all there."

"Let's get some food in you and you'll be fine."

Kitty watched from the table as Evan and Kurt joined the long line up by the food counter. Kitty didn't know how to feel about Kurt. He had always been there for her, and she had a pretty good grasp of how he felt. Kurt was her best friend and he had always been there to help her through difficult times, even when he didn't know he was doing it. Any time Kitty felt down from any student making a rude remark about her being a mutant, she would think about Kurt. How he would react and that he had certainly faced a lot of repartee his entire life, while she didn't face much of if any ridicule until she was at least in high school, so she actually considered herself "lucky". She would also be comforted by the notion that Kurt would make her feel better if or when he saw her upset. No matter what situation Kitty was in, she knew she could always count on Kurt to comfort her and she would do the same for him if he ever needed it.

"Yoo hoo! Anybody home?"

Kitty looked up from her vegetarian wrap to see Jean waving her hand in Kitty's face.

"Oh, hey Jean. When did you get here?"

"Um, I walked in with you."

"Oh yeah! Sorry," Kitty let out a nervous little chuckle, "I've got a sociology test after lunch and I really don't want to fail it."

"Doing some 'mental studying' are we?"

"Something like that."

"I see."

Kitty looked over at Jean's smirking expression, clearly knowing there was something else. What was Kitty thinking?

_You can't fool a psychic. _

Jean was a very attractive girl. She had decided to take grade twelve x along with Scott and Rogue. She had long radiant red hair that fell just above her waist, luminous almond shaped eyes the colour of a shallow green pond, and a golden sand coloured complexion. Kitty watched as Jean lifted a brow and tried to hold back a smile.

"Did you study last night?"

"Yeah, but I still want to do well. I had a rough morning in my other classes so I don't know if I forgot anything." Kitty was trying hard to cover any embarrassing thoughts by her test excuse just incase Jean decided to invade her privacy.

"You'll do fine. Did your rough morning happen to include your sunrise walk with Kurt?"

_So much for covering my thoughts up._

Kitty let out another nervous chuckle as all the blood pulsating through her body ran right into her face.

"What do you mean?"

Scott, who had been quietly cramming in some last minute homework questions till that point, cleared his throat.

"We went looking for you guys this morning and realized that the van was still in the garage, meaning you guys hadn't left yet."

"What makes you think we walked?"

Rogue's raspy voice spoke up.

"Kitty, come on."

Kitty could have died right then and there. She didn't know why she was so embarrassed, probably because of how amused Scott and Jean were by the awkward teenaged romance involved, or that even Rogue noticed it, or by the fact that it was Kurt, whose appearance made him the "black sheep" of the group, and it was out of character for someone like her to have such a "moment" with someone like him. For once she was actually grateful that the Brotherhood group was walking towards the Xavier table, which would surely distract Scott, Rogue and Jean's focus. Luck was on Kitty's side as Scott noticed their presence and changed the subject.

"Great, what do they want?"

Rogue, who had been sitting across from Kitty, looked over her shoulder to see the group of mutants walking in their direction. She rolled her eyes and turned back to face Kitty.

"Why do they keep bothering us?"

"Because they have to constantly have someone to irritate, and because if they harass a 'human' student, they'll get punished so they bug us." Kitty said as she glared at Lance.

Kitty would have liked to deny it, but there was a time when she had strong feelings for Lance. She didn't know if it was because of the "rugged" look or if it was because when she first came to know about her powers, he was the first to take her under his wing. But he was still part of the Brotherhood, and he had said and done some stupid things that Kitty found hard to forgive and forget.

"Hey X-lax. How are you guys doing?"

"Shut up, Pietro."

"Hey, I'm not here to insult."

"Then what do you want?" Scott firmly asked, clearly annoyed by the Brotherhood's company.

"We just wanted to pay our favourite mutants a visit." Todd hopped up to sit beside Rogue, who seemed mortified.

"Oh, God! You reek!"

"It's the smell of love, baby."

"Well, it smells pretty disgusting. Besides, I thought your favourite mutants would be each other."

"Nah, it gets boring, so we thought we'd come and express our love for you guys."

"Yeah, you guys are our fellow mutant." Fred said in his usual brainless tone.

Tabitha blew out a deep breath and rolled her eyes. She used to be a part of the X-men and deep down, she actually felt remorse for leaving, especially when she was around the other Xavier students. She almost felt a sense of humiliation whenever the members of her new family, the Brotherhood, wanted to aggravate them seeing as she used to be a part of that and she didn't want to seem hypocritical. Pietro sat down right beside Scott while Todd stayed beside Rogue. Lance and Tabitha sat down at the table alongside them.

"We'll just sit down and join you. How about that? Some good old 'mutant bonding'. You might want to scooch over for Blob there, Jean."

Kurt and Evan turned from the food counter and headed for the table. Kurt had his attention focused on not touching anyone and keeping his food on his tray. Evan stopped his stride, dropped his head back and moaned.

"Perfect."

"What?"

"Look at our table."

"Wundervoll. What the hell do they want?"

"Beats me. Do you want to sit somewhere else?"

Usually Kurt would have done anything to avoid sitting with the Brotherhood, even if it involved him breaking the rule of the X-men being a team. That day was different. He especially didn't want to leave Kitty to suffer with their injurious comments.

"No, we might as well suffer with Kitty, Rogue, Scott and Jean."

The two of them made their way to the table.

"Ah, more love to join the group!" Pietro said, moving over to make room for Kurt and Evan. "Sit down! Sit down!"

"I'd rather stand. What are you guys doing here?"

"We're just expressing our undying love for you guys."

Kurt sneered over at Todd who had Rogue backed up to the wall of the cafeteria and examined the rest of the table to see Kitty's repulsed and slightly anxious expression, Scott's face that blatantly displayed his resentment for the Brotherhood, and Jean's face stuck in a state of what looked like shock. Obviously she knew what Pietro was up to, but she couldn't stop him.

"This doesn't look like love to me." Kurt started to worry.

"Well, you see we were thinking to ourselves. Mutants should all live as one, kind of like a team, in peace."

"In case you didn't notice, Pietro, that's why the Professor started the institute. So mutants could learn to control their powers and work as a team with other mutants." Scott voiced in his exasperated tone.

Pietro's brow furrowed as he mockingly thought to himself.

"Yeah, yeah… you're right. I think that's why I'm having such a hard time believing the whole teamwork thing."

Evan spoke up.

"Pietro, just tell us what the hell you guys are doing here and leave."

"Yeah! Like, what do you want?" Kitty's teeth gritted as she spoke.

Kurt noticed that Lance and Tabitha were at the table nearby, but they looked as if they refused to join in whatever Pietro wanted. Then he started to get even more perplexed as to what Pietro was up to.

"We were thinkin'…"

"Shut up, Fred. You don't think." Todd laughed as he and Pietro exchanged a menacing smile.

"Well, back to that whole teamwork thing. You X-men, or whatever you want to be called, haven't been showing much of it."

Pietro paused to take in the priceless moment of confusing his enemies.

"Well we noticed that one of you is breaking a few laws. One being the whole X-men stupid, little teamwork bullshit and the other being one of Principal Kelly's laws. The one that goes… Oh I don't know… something along the lines of 'any mutant failing to reveal themselves will be denied his or her education.' And we wouldn't want a certain little blue X-man not to be able to graduate, would we?"

Kurt's eyes widened as he stared off into blank space. His entire body became cold and clammy. He bit his lip and flinched as he drew a few drops of blood from the fangs that were hidden by his watch and he swore his stomach was doing gymnastics. He could feel his hands losing their grip on the food tray before it hit the floor getting a few human students' attention. Kurt felt all eyes at the table stare at him and his momentary fright, which felt like an eternity, was interrupted by the sound of one of Kitty's friends.

"Is he alright?"

Kurt slowly turned his head to see Kitty's friend, Amy, turned towards him. Her face was in a state of worry and confusion. Then he noticed Pietro quickly standing up.

"That's a very good question."

"Pietro, can't we talk this over?" Jean, who was usually calm, showed a loss of serenity and her voice shook as she spoke.

"You guys have had plenty of time to talk it over. Did you think we wouldn't notice?"

Scott stood up and towered over Pietro as he leaned in close to murmur.

"Kurt revealed himself to the whole school as a mutant. Can't you live with that?"

"Gee… I don't know, Summers. I mean, technically his true appearance is a mutation in itself. I think that counts as a refusal to reveal yourself to the school."

"Hey! Why don't we settle this outside?" Evan said as he crouched into a wrestling-like stand.

Kitty jumped up from her seat. She couldn't let anything like this happen to Kurt. He would do the same for anyone else. His worst nightmare was going to happen at that exact moment!

"Pietro! Just leave us, especially Kurt, alone! We've only got a few more months left of school. Just drop it! Please!"

"C'mon fuzz-ball, you've got Kitty here stickin' up for you! Can't you defend yourself?"

Kurt looked over at Todd who was now standing across from him. If he were anywhere else but school he could have ported away and left it all behind. But that would risk even more retribution if he displayed his powers. Scott spoke again but this time he grabbed Pietro's arm.

"I'm not going to tell you again! Leave him alone!"

Fred came up behind Scott and pulled his arms off the now pleased Pietro and held him with his brawny, iron grip. Kurt realized that the Brotherhood wasn't the only unwanted attention. He brought himself out of his blank stare and become aware of the fact that he now held the attention of most of the human populace of the cafeteria.

_If I port now, they'll tell Kelly and I'll get suspended or worse!_

All he could do was pray as he always did. He looked at all the diverse expressions on the faces of his peers. Some were angry, annoyed, some were worried, and some even looked frightened. But the thing that made him mad was they were all "normal" faces. Was he being punished for something? Why would God grant so many people normal bodies and lives, and curse him with such a misshapen body and such intense abnormalities? He looked at the faces of the students that had endlessly tormented the lower end of the popularity scale. Why did such rotten people deserve to be blessed with a normal body? Why should they not have to worry about what and who they are when they are at school? Kurt was a good student; he never made fun of anyone and always tried his best. Why should he be denied his chance at an education just because of something he was born with? Kurt covered his ears and bent forward.

"I never chose this! It's not fair!"

_Damn it! Why did I say that outloud?_

Stares were all sent his way. If he didn't have some people's attention before, he certainly had it now. His highly tuned hearing picked up a variety of comments to match the variety of facial expressions.

"What's going on?"

"What's up with that mutant kid?"

"What did he say?"

"Why are they all together?"

"Why are they centering him out?"

Kurt didn't know what he could do. It seemed like the silence was deafening. It was broken by the sound of the Brotherhood's laughter. Kurt looked at the three members who were intent on ruining any hope of an ordinary life he once had. Kitty's eyes started to glisten. She was fighting back tears. Lance and Tabitha had turned away, both with their backs to the focus of the entire cafeteria's concentration. Pietro put a hand on Kurt's back and leaned in to whisper in his ear.

"This is your chance to do the honorable thing…"

Kurt was still in his state of distress. He could hardly even speak let alone move. Why was Pietro doing this? And why was he doing it now? He couldn't teleport even if he wanted to. He had no strength and no mindset to do it. Who knows where he could end up? Todd, who had been jumpy throughout the entire ordeal, finally lost his patience.

"Too late now!"

With that, Pietro, using his lightning speed, pulled Kurt up onto the table and held out his left arm while Todd jumped up and snatched Kurt's holowatch right off his wrist.

**Would you be angry if I stopped it right here? Calm down because I'm not that mean haha.**

Screams. That's all Kurt heard. Rushes of old memories he had concealed in his mind busted through the vaults and bounced off the walls of his skull like a bouncy ball thrown into a small, empty room. Kurt's heart hammered against the chamber of his chest. He thought for sure it was going to jump right out of his body and onto the table, which would have suited him just fine. Kurt was standing on the cafeteria table, his true form out on display for the entire school to see. Students who had been out in the hallways were now pouring through the cafeteria doors to see the "demon" mutant in their school.

"There it is people!" Pietro still had his hand on Kurt's arm as he held him up like the winner of a fight.

Kurt was frozen in fear. There he was. All those horrified and scrutinizing gazes stuck on him and his blue fur that covered him from head to toe; his long and thin three fingered hands, pointed elf-like ears and piercing, glowing yellow eyes that were now filled with pain and fear. He watched dumbfounded as the exploratory eyes of his peers slowly moved down his distorted body to look at his two-toed, bare feet.

"Hey Pietro! They can't see his legs!"

"Good point, Todd!"

With that, Todd leapt up on the table and pulled Kurt's right plant leg tight to his body so the school could see his fawn-like legs. Kitty let out a scream as tears gushed down her cheeks. The other X-men were in almost as much shock as Kurt. None of them could move to help their friend who so desperately needed it. Kurt had lost all his brainpower. So many thoughts were exploding in his mind. He could hardly even comprehend what was actually going on. It was like some kin of bad dream that he couldn't wake up from. He started to hyperventilate and the crowd's thunderous cries grew louder when they noticed his fang-like teeth.

"Hey Todd!"

"What?"

"Aren't you forgetting the finale?"

"Huh?"

Pietro was trying to be theatrical, but Todd obviously wasn't on the same page.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the cherry on top, or behind I guess I should say, of this creature!"

With that, Pietro lifted up Kurt's shirt to expose a restraint wrapped around his waist, and ripped it off as Kurt's tail lashed around violently behind him. The entire school gasped before they fell silent.

"Take it in!" Pietro seemed very satisfied and sneered at the other X-men as he and the rest of the Brotherhood walked away.

Kurt crouched down and put his hands over his ears. He would have given anything to be invisible. He stayed as still as he could, but his tail, that sickening addition to his already distorted form, looked as if it was trying to escape as much as Kurt had wanted to. He didn't know what to do. He was so disturbed by the entire outlandish event that if he teleported now, he could end up anywhere. A public bathroom, mall, grocery store or even in the middle of traffic.

The only noise or lack there of, was silence. No screams, nothing. Had he died? Was he deafened by the screams from before? Either outcome would have pleased Kurt. At least he wouldn't have to worry about anything anymore. But that fantasy was short lived when an earth shattering scream sounded through the cafeteria accompanied by many more. The entire room was in chaos. People were standing up and backing up to the doors.

"What the hell is that?"

"It's all blue!"

"And furry!"

"It has a tail!"

"Look at its hands!"

Kitty was just standing there with her hands over her mouth. She had just been a witness to the one thing that Kurt had been dreading since he was old enough to think and she did nothing to stop it. She had been screaming just as loud as the other students in the room. Kitty realized what she was doing and bit her lip to stop her uncontrollable shrieks.

_What have I done?_

She stepped up on to the table and held Kurt's wrists in her hands and phased through the floor into the basement of the school. They landed on the cement floor soundlessly. Kurt was sitting down pulling his legs closer to him and his head buried in his arms. Even his tail, which was usually uncontrollable, had wrapped itself around his feet. He was trying to make himself as small as possible, almost as if to reduce attention. Kitty was on her knees, and put her hands on either side of his face and lifted his head so his eyes met with hers.

"Kurt, look at me are you alright?"

Kitty looked into Kurt's eyes. She had never seen his gaze like that before in all the years she'd known him. His eyes, instead of being a warm gold colour filled with such life and enthusiasm, seemed to be as vibrant as a highlighter, filled with so much pain and sorrow.

"Kurt, talk to me."

All he could do was stare. They stayed like that for what seemed like hours but was only a minute at the most, just really looking into each other's eyes, almost looking right into one another's thoughts. How could they possibly be part of the same race but have such dramatic differences?

"We've got to get you out of here."

"_Kitty?"_

"_Jean!"_

"_Are you guys in the basement?"_

"_Yes. Please, Jean… get here quick!"_

"_We're coming. How's Kurt? I've been trying to get a mental reading from him for the past five minutes."_

"_He's not doing so good."_

"_We're on our way."_

"Don't worry, Kurt. We're going to get you home."

Kitty was now holding Kurt in her arms. She stroked his head with her one hand while the other rubbed his back. Kitty felt so useless. Her best friend had just suffered the one thing he had feared in life, and it was huge. What could she do? Any time Kurt had lent a hand or comforted her, it was all things that could be solved by discussion. She had no idea how to console him. How could she tell him everything was going to be alright, when they both knew full well that it wouldn't be? How could he go back to living any kind of normal life he had had? There was nothing Kitty could do, just like there was nothing she did do while it was happening. A flow of questions came back into her mind. Why couldn't she stop the Brotherhood from revealing her best friend? What would happen to Kurt in terms of school? And worst of all; what would Kurt do once he came to his senses?

**Well, I hope you enjoyed that chapter. I've got much more on the way. I hope you are enjoying reading it******** . Read and Review! (Positive)**


	4. Chapter 4

**I don't have much to say other than thanks for the wonderful reviews, as always! Sorry it took so long to get this done but we had like 2 beautiful weeks, where I'm from, (kind of like the first chapter) where it was like 20 degrees Celsius and so I was outdoors for the week. And I'm leaving for New York for a few days with my drama class so I've been busy. I'm really sorry if this chapter seems… messy but I had so many ideas that I wanted to put into this chapter and I don't know how well I conveyed it. It seemed fine to me when I proof read it, but things change when someone else reads it. What may make perfect sense in my mind may not make sense in your mind. If there is any confusion I will be happy to inform anyone and edit it to my best abilities. But all in all I don't think it's that confusing I'm just overreacting haha. **

**P.S. I actually sat there for 5 to 10 minutes debating on whether or not to use some foul language and at a certain point where I felt it was necessary to use some language to express anger. I'm sorry if anyone gets offended!! **

**Without further ado, here is chapter four….**

Chapter 4:

Jean, Scott, Evan and Rogue hurried down the stairs of the school. The basement was an all too familiar place for the X-men, as there had been another incident with Kurt and Forge's machine. The walls were a sickly ochre colour and the floor was cold, hard cement. In the middle of this dark and drab room was, looking quite out of place, Kitty who still held the shaken up Kurt in her arms. She turned around with her mouth gaped open in liberation at the arrival of her friends.

"Jean! Oh my God! How the hell are we going to get him out of here?"

"I don't know. Maybe we can get him to port himself home or at least to the car."

"I doubt that's going to happen."

"Let me try."

Kitty gently ceased her hold of Kurt and stood up. He pulled himself into a "ball" again.

Jean crouched down and became eye level with Kurt. All Kitty could do was watch hopelessly just like the other students, in silence, as Jean tried to help Kurt get out of the school. Jean put her hand under Kurt's chin and lifted his head to gain his attention. She spoke in calm, comforting voice trying to use her X-men training to be composed in all situations.

"Kurt? Look at me. You need to port yourself out of here. Can you teleport to Scott's car? It's in the student parking lot… Can you do it?"

Kurt's panicked neon yellow eyes had turned to a deep, rich gold colour that no longer read "fear" but pure agony and resentment. Jean had to struggle to stop the tears, which had welled up, from falling down her cheeks. She had never seen Kurt that way. He was always such a happy, go lucky person no matter what the circumstances were. She stood up and turned her face away from the rest of the students to hide how disturbed she was.

"We're going to have to get him out of here ourselves. He doesn't look like he's going to be moving under his own free will anytime soon."

"Scott, help me pick him up." Evan said, slipping his arms under Kurt's.

"Can't we just call the professor and get him to help us?"

Everyone turned to look at Rogue who was genuinely fearful for what would happen to Kurt who was not only a good friend, but her only form of supportive family as he was her pseudo sibling.

"It's worth a shot." Evan shrugged.

"Come on Jean! Please try and get the professor!"

Jean glanced over at Kitty, who was using every ounce of strength she had not to cry, but failed miserably as several tears coursed down her cheeks. Although she was also upset, it was definitely worth a try.

"I'll see what I can do. Give me a minute"

Jean placed her right fingertips to her temples and closed her eyes. Kitty went back down to comfort Kurt. Rogue joined Kitty's efforts. Scott and Evan looked back and forth from the group cluttered on the floor to Jean whose eyebrows and facial expressions showed either a deep conversation with whomever she was communicating to, or she was trying desperately to get in contact with someone who could help them.

Time slowly ticked by for what seemed like hours. Nobody had patience anymore; especially with the awkward stillness that no one had the heart to interrupt except for the roars of the students upstairs obviously in an array of pandemonium screaming about the "blue demon mutant". Kitty finally snapped she knew it wouldn't be long before teachers and students would seize them in a frenzy of turmoil and panic. Kitty's sudden outburst caused Jean to fall out of her trance and startle the other students.

"Jean! We've been sitting here for, like ten minutes! Did you get a hold of the professor yet? Or are you just going to stand there like you did in the cafeteria?"

"Excuse me?"

"You did nothing while Kurt was up on that table, just like you're doing nothing right now!"

"Hey Kitty, she's trying her best! And as I recall you didn't jump up to help him either! No one did."

Kitty looked over at Rogue who glared at her in a defiant stare that sent shudders starting at her tailbone and going right to the nape of her neck. Rogue's piercing green eyes, rimmed with harsh black makeup, were enough to make anyone tremble when she stared, almost as if she was looking right into their thoughts. But she was right. Kitty even knew she had done nothing before Rogue had made that comment.

"I'm sorry. I just can't believe that it actually happened…"

Jean was still mildly offended from Kitty's remark, but she knew that Kitty's mind was a flurry of different emotions. And Jean didn't need to be psychic to realize it. She looked at Kitty with a hint of compassion.

"Kitty, I know how you feel. We all can't believe it happened, but yelling at each other isn't going to get Kurt home any faster."

_Why is Jean always right?_

Scott nodded in agreement and looked over at Jean.

"Did you make contact with the professor?"

"Yes, but I don't know if all my messages got through to him. I'm just so worked up…"

Jean started to break down. No one had seen two things that day. Nobody had seen Jean lose her composure like that, ever; and no one had ever seen Kurt in such a hypnotized state of melancholy and apprehension. Scott was quick to comfort her. He held Jean's small form in his husky arms. Jean was leaking out hushed little sobs and sniffs while the rest just looked on as they had before. Then Scott, Kitty, Rogue and Evan all became very alert. Something was getting louder: shouting.

"Do you hear that?"

"Oh my God!"

The commotion and hollering became more coherent as the crowd grew closer.

"They're down there! I saw that one mutant chick fall through the floor with it!"

"Be careful! Did you see its teeth?"

"I think those other mutants came down here too."

The Xavier students were in a silent panic. None of them knew what they were going to do. Kurt unquestionably did not need more gawks and repartee sent to him, especially considering the state of hypnosis he was already in. Then, Rogue had an epiphany. She looked up in realization at how foolish she was that she didn't think of it sooner.

"Get out of the way."

Rogue pushed Kitty out of the way and shooed Evan off to the side. She hurled herself down in front of Kurt, pulled off her gloves and touched her bare hands to Kurt's arms. Rogue closed her eyes and felt Kurt's dead energy flow from his arms and into her body. It was like someone was injecting her veins with some sort of warm energy. Kurt finally showed some signs of life since the cafeteria. His eyes opened wide, his tail was fluttering at the tip like an irritated cat. Then his whole body seemed to go limp.

"Good idea." Evan said in almost a too jovial way considering the situation.

"Take him to the car." Scott urged.

Rogue wrapped her arms protectively around Kurt and with a "bamf" they were gone. All that was left was a puff of smoke that didn't smell the same as when Kurt teleported. It smelt more like a bon fire than brimstone and sulfur.

"Let's get out of here."

Kitty grabbed everyone while Jean levitated them all upwards. The outside of the basement was on the other side from where the car was parked. Thank God for the normalcy of their appearances that they could run unnoticed.

Scott had driven the Xavier students back to the institute right after Kurt's tribulations at school. The entire ride was painstaking for all the passengers. Jean was in the front, seated between Scott and Evan while Rogue and Kitty sat in the back on either side of Kurt. Everyone had a mix of emotions fluttering through their minds, but the overall mood was discouraging. Kitty and Rogue had been talking to Kurt the whole way home, trying to console him. Jean had regained her tranquility and was able to make mental contact with the professor telling him what happened through cerebral images and had given up on trying to get fully inside Kurt's head. Evan and Scott remained fairly quiet due to their extended exasperation at that moment. However, it was Kurt's silence that scared the Xavier students the most.

"Kurt, we're almost home." Kitty said, holding one of his long, furry hands in her small, flesh ones.

"Kurt, can you talk to us?"

Kurt had remained in an almost fetal like state the moment they got him into the car. He was bent over in his seat, his elbows resting on his thighs with the palms of his hands on his forehead. He hadn't said a word since the incident in the cafeteria. Everyone could only imagine what he was thinking and none of them liked what their imaginations were coming up with, except for Rogue who had an all too real taste of what he was truly thinking.

They had pulled into the driveway of the mansion. Scott put the car in park, cut the engine and turned around.

"Kurt. We need to get you inside."

The students all watched intently for Kurt's movements. Jean and Scott looked at each other.

"_This isn't going to go smoothly."_

"_Did you get into his head?"_

"_Just little glimpses here and there. It doesn't look so good and those were just little snippets."_

Kitty had been frantic the entire time. She was Kurt's best friend and she knew he would move mountains for her, yet she did absolutely nothing to help Kurt during the only time in his whole life that he actually would have needed it the most. Her heart had been pounding in her chest the entire time. She tried to summon some courage to speak to Kurt without showing how petrified she was.

"Kurt, let's go to your room. Do you need help getting out of the car?"

Evan looked over at Kitty.

"He's not going to move. Jean will probably have to lift him out."

After a brief moment of more desolateness, Kurt moved his left hand from his forehead. The rest of students watched attentively as Kurt, who had remained in a vegetative state for the past hour finally showed some signs of life. He reached out and grabbed a firm hold of Kitty's forearm and teleported out of the car, bringing Kitty along with him and leaving the rest of the students in the car with a puff of his sulfur and brimstone smoke scent. All they could do was look at each other and exchange confused glances. Evan spoke up.

"That went better than expected."

Kurt and Kitty ended up in Kurt's room. The professor's far superior brainpower was no match for Kurt and he could tell Kurt wanted some alone time, so he decided to confront Kurt when he was more stable. Kitty and Kurt were both on his bed. Kurt was still latching onto Kitty's arm, but somehow, now, both of his long, velvet soft hands were clenched tightly to her, as his head was bent down and his eyes just stared blankly at the floor. It took Kitty a moment to absorb what was happening before she spoke.

"Kurt… do you want me to leave?"

Kitty wasn't really expecting a straight answer, and she wondered why she even bothered to waste her breath. She jumped a little at the unexpected sound of his voice finally breaking through.

"No."

She moved closer to him, almost to let him know she was not going anywhere anytime soon. She couldn't believe this was the world she lived in. Mutants were all too real. She felt so selfish. She had gotten so distressed when her powers started to show. How could she forget how she reacted? Thinking the world was coming to an end because her perfect little life had been interrupted by what the professor considered "gifts". She couldn't even begin to imagine what was going through Kurt's mind. Everyday of his life he and everyone else knew he was different. Even though just like every other mutant he developed his powers at puberty, there was no denying that his entire body was a mutation from birth.

"Do you want to talk about anything?"

She imagined smacking herself in the head at that comment.

_Good job! He probably thinks I'm a moron for asking so many stupid questions._

She watched Kurt's eyes slowly close as his back lifted when he sighed.

"It was uncomfortable."

_What is he talking about?_

"What was?"

Kurt couldn't even summon the nerve to look Kitty in the eyes. He almost felt a sense of embarrassment at what had happened that afternoon and for the two of them to be sitting in his bedroom alone while he was in such a vulnerable frame of mind.

"Wearing that scheibe inducer all the time… you were right. It was uncomfortable sometimes… Every morning I had to make sure everything was controlled. That stupid belt needed to be done up right, I had to make sure I had no holes in my shirts and I pretty much needed to stretch my back and legs so I could walk upright through the day."

The last comment mildly caught Kitty off guard.

"Then why didn't you just get the professor to change some things on it so you could walk comfortably?"

"I asked him to change the angle."

"Why?"

Kurt paused for a moment. His eyes seemed to return to their usual golden colour, but the fear and humiliation was still present in his gaze. He circled his tongue around one of his top fangs and let out another sigh.

"I wanted to teach myself how to do it."

"Teach yourself how to do what?"

"Walk normal."

"Why would you put yourself through that?"

"I just get so frustrated sometimes. There are so many things I can't do that I would give anything to be able to do. I felt that it was a small stepping stone to feel even the slightest bit normal."

"What kinds of things can't you do?"

He finally turned his head to face Kitty. She knew this was a sensitive topic for him considering he would usually avoid talking about his body at all costs.

"I can't shake anyone's hand. Someone would feel my messed up hands and this... fur. When I hand in an assignment to a teacher I get more nervous at the idea of them touching me than the mark I'll get. Or on a hot day I can't even wear short sleeves to school because of walking through the hallways. I couldn't even take gym. I had to get the professor to lie in a note and tell the school I had already got a gym credit when I was at 'my high school' in Germany. I can't even hold a pencil or wear shoes without looking like an idiot!"

Kitty could tell that a lot of what he just said was difficult for him to spit out. Referring to having "fur" on your body would be hard for anyone to say, especially in Kurt's case when that wasn't the only thing "wrong" with him.

"Why can't you take gym? You're one of the more athletic people in this entire institute."

"Have you seen how I run? I can't stand on two feet and run, and incase that wouldn't be conspicuous enough, someone would definitely touch me."

"I still don't understand why you didn't just get the professor to change the angle back to how it was when you first got it. You walked comfortably before and the hologram looked fine. You're still human, Kurt. I know we're all mutants but we still are people with human rights."

"You could never understand. You have no idea what it's like from the moment you were able to comprehend your surroundings, that you were different. For some people it's just a skin condition or a mental thing or whatever. But imagine this; instead of being just a different race, I'm blue, Kitty. Look at me! I'm blue! I've got elf ears! Ears that you see in fantasy movies! My hands are missing two fingers and I've got two toes on my feet! My legs look like a dog's! I have a tail! I have a tail for scheisse sake! How in God's name am I supposed to feel human when I resemble an animal better than a person? I spent my childhood locked in my house and I couldn't even go outside unless it was dark out! Instead of playing with other kids, I watched them. Do you have any idea how that feels? Hell, my own biological mother, who is no better looking, didn't even want me. There is no getting around it, Kitty… I'm a freak."

Kurt displayed the malformations on his body as he narrated them. Then put his palms to his forehead again and rested his elbows on his thighs. Kitty could feel her heart sink. She looked at him from head to toe. His shaggy navy blue hair hung hiding the side of his face from Kitty, his strong but slender arms showed how tense he was. Then she couldn't help but notice his tail moving back and forth like an agitated cat. A shiver was sent through her entire body as she felt all the blood rush to her face and the tears gushed down her cheeks.

"Kurt, I'm so sorry. I don't know what I can do."

"There is nothing you can do. I can't even do anything. I can't even accept myself after living like this for eighteen years... It sounds so stupid but every day I just imagine waking up and all of this," he gestured towards himself, "disappearing and I could be normal, like the professor, like Scott, Evan, Rogue, Logan, and you."

Kitty had no idea what to say. He never talked about his problems and quarrels that he had with himself to anyone, when it was undeniably evident how many issues he had.

"I'm sorry I didn't do anything today."

Kurt let out a laugh and sighed out what Kitty took as a "Yeah". Then he sat up and looked at her. Kitty started to feel uncomfortable.

"I was frozen in fear. I couldn't have done anything even if I tried. I'm so sorry."

She waited for Kurt's response. He looked as if he had just been punched in the stomach and was trying to hold in a scream. She had no idea what kind of response would come out of him.

"It wasn't just you Kitty… I mean, you could have done something, but Scott and Jean could have too, and Rogue and Evan... even I could have done something."

Kitty was taken aback by that last comment and a little irritated. How did he think he could have done something? Was he trying to be macho even when his worst nightmare had happened only hours before? Kitty knew herself that to phase she needed to concentrate and be aware that she was going to do it.

"Kurt, you couldn't have done anything. You were in so much shock and you were probably so scared you wouldn't have been able to port yourself out of there."

An angry and confused look spread across Kurt's velvet sapphire face.

"Were you guys worried about getting caught for using your powers in school?"

Kurt seemed to be building up a wall and that perturbed Kitty.

"What? No, of course not! You're more important than us getting expelled. And if I recall I was the one who took you down to the basement."

That was true. Kurt couldn't deny that she was the reason why he was taken out of viewing range. But one question still lingered in his mind.

"Why didn't you do it sooner?"

"I don't know. Kurt, the Brotherhood would have found a way to do it. Besides, the school would start to get suspicious as to why we all rushed to get you out of there. And like I said, the Brotherhood would have figured out a way, probably even more nasty, to expose you to the school if today's plan didn't work. I know it sounds harsh but that's what I think."

Kurt hated to admit it but Kitty had a valid point. They probably would have thought of a "better" way to get his secret out. Kurt didn't even want to imagine what they would come up with. He looked away and went back to his position of holding his head up with his palms, again filled with disgrace towards himself. The anger and defense in the room seemed to ease up and a more sullen mood fell over the two of them.

"I'm sorry, Kitty. I just have no idea what I'm going to do. I'll probably never even get to graduate."

Kitty bit her lips together to choke back some more tears. She followed Kurt's gaze to the floor and they stared into oblivion together. Then she spoke up.

"Kurt."

He looked up straight into her eyes. Those golden orbs of his were filled with pain and abhorrence like before and that didn't make Kitty's attempt at not crying any easier.

"No matter what happens, I'm here for you and we will get through this. I'll be here every step of the way. You're such a good friend and I'll do anything for you to get back on your feet."

Then she grabbed Kurt's arm and pulled him into a tight embrace. Kurt closed his eyes. A shiver was sent down his entire body as he felt her warm, soft, skin touch his hot and matted fur. He would have given anything to stay in that moment forever. But then a light flicked on in his head as he replayed her beautiful voice in his head at what she had just said.

'_You're such a good friend and I'll do anything for you to get back on your feet.'_

A single tear trickled down Kurt's cheek but was soon lost in his fur. Not at what had happened in the cafeteria, but at the fact that that's all they would ever be… Friends.

**There you go. I'm sorry for the long wait and I hope I didn't upset anyone with this chapter. I'll be back soon! I'm headed off to New York. Please send back positive reviews and I can't wait to write the next chapter!! And thank you SO much for all the amazing reviews so far! Seriously, you guys rock!**


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm back! Actually I've been back since April 20****th**** but it takes a while to write my chapters. I'm glad you guys are enjoying this story. I love writing it and I did get some inspiration while I was in the Big Apple! I had a twelve hour bus ride there and back! We left at 9:30 at night on Wednesday April 16****th**** and so we were supposed to "sleep" on the bus. I did sleep for a few hours but during those quiet times in the wee hours of the morning I was thinking about this story. Also, I was at this authentic comic book store and I bought a Kurt bust that is him dressed as a pirate! I love it and I found it so fitting considering my profile name is Captain Nightcrawler! Haha! Another really ironic thing is someone at my school got expelled while I was away which is weird because that is what Kurt is worried about and considering when I wrote the first chapter I mentioned it was mid April and the weather was exactly like it's been here! WEIRD! No foreshadowing here at all, seriously… Haha, I'm just stating some things that have influenced me a bit for this story and things that I've been taking into consideration. Don't worry; there won't be any Pirates of the Caribbean crossovers or anything, and Kurt will not be going on an epic adventure sailing the seven seas. I'm sorry, but he just won't be doing so… not in this story anyway. **

**P.S. I am truly sorry for offending anyone with the cursing. I actually went back and made the swearing into German. When I get writing I just get so caught up in the moment. I went back and realized it would have probably been less offensive but the same message would have gotten across with German cursing. Please accept my sincerest apologies. And as always, thank you for the amazing reviews and I truly mean that from the bottom of my heart. It was such a great welcoming home when I read all those wonderful comments. I could go on and on but I literally mean every single one of you guys, thank you. And for the people, who have written little pointers here and there, thank you I appreciate it and I always take your constructive criticism to heart. I always need someone to tell me how to improve otherwise I'd be stagnant. And as for the one comment about Kurt being in the circus in the X-men Evolution cartoons, I looked that up and they never mentioned it but I may touch upon it because I always liked that aspect of Kurt's character, probably because my friends and family tell me I should be in it. I hope I don't let anyone down, it's another filler chapter but I need to give you guys this information or it's not going to make sense. Believe me, I took creative writing in school and once all this information is given to you, it makes all the interesting chapters make more sense! And there is more God talk so I'm sorry if I offend, remember it's just a story but I don't think I wrote anything offensive. But here is chapter five! **

Chapter 5:

The residents of the Xavier Institute were all seated at the dinner table. Ororo had made a big spaghetti dinner, but no one really felt like eating. They just silently pushed their food around on their plates. The only noises that were heard in the past fifteen minutes were the chimes of silverware on china. By then everyone else had heard the news about Kurt's unpleasant incident at school that day, and they knew he wasn't going to be the same for a while considering he locked himself up in his room and refused anyone's company. The other bewildering factor on their minds was that only God knew what was going to happen to him at school if he ever returned.

Xavier scanned the students from his spot at the head of the long, white, granite table. He paid special notice to those who bore witness to Kurt's ordeal. Rogue caught his gaze first. Her left fist was supporting her porcelain cheek while her right hand stick handled a meatball with her fork. Scott and Jean were seated across the table from Rogue. Both of them seemed to be taking little involuntary bites here and there. Evan was in a similar pose as Rogue, except his mindless attention was focused on twirling his fork in the spaghetti and watching the noodles wrap tightly around the utensil. Then Charles turned to Kitty who was sitting to his right in between himself and Rogue. Her hands rested in her lap with a vacant expression extended across her gorgeous face. Although the entire table was noiseless, Charles knew Kitty's silent behaviour was an obvious aftereffect of what had taken place earlier and that somehow she felt responsible for what had happened to Kurt. Xavier knew he needed to get some clarification out of Kurt and Kitty to settle their minds before Kurt had to deal with the public and the school. Xavier sent Kitty a mental message, as not to raise suspicion out of the other students.

"_Kitty, if you don't mind, after dinner I'd like to speak with you in the library." _

She snapped out of her abstraction and back to reality. She blinked several times as the professor's calm but assertive voice reverberated through her mentality. The thing that annoyed her most about the professor and Jean's telepathy was that no one could pretend they didn't hear them. Either one of them could send a mental message to a hearing impaired person and be heard as clear as day. There was no excuse for any of the other Xavier students not to hear them. She had no other choice than to respond.

"_About what?"_

"_I'd like to speak with you and Kurt about what happened at school this afternoon."_

Kitty winced both mentally and physically. She had heard Kurt's confessions, about how frustrating it was for him to deal with his mutations, only hours ago. She had seen how intricate it was for him to verbally express what he was "doomed" to live the rest of his life with. She didn't want to hear anymore of the disconcerting things Kurt would say especially in front of the professor where there would be no secrets and nothing would be watered down. He would be exposing it all, every last detail. There was no way to back out of the conversation that would be taking place after supper, and all Kitty knew was that she was not looking forward to it at all, and she knew Kurt wouldn't be either.

It was a regular chore that all the students had to participate in cleaning after group events, such as dinner. The entire time Kitty stood over the sink, robotically scrubbing dishes, she tried to prepare herself for whatever reactions Kurt would potentially illustrate. She wasn't sure if her heart could handle hearing anymore of the hardships he had gone through. She went through all the ways she would keep her composure if he got angry, if he remained silent or worse yet, if he cried. When she finally put away the last dish, she knew it was time to go meet the professor and Kurt. Kitty decided to take her time and uneasily made her way through the ostentatious mahogany hallway to the library.

As she passed through the foyer, she looked around the mansion and thought about her first time there. She remembered feeling so upset about being a mutant and how determined she had been not to enjoy herself at the institute. As Kitty walked past the luxurious staircase, where she had met Kurt for the first time, she thought about their first impressions and how they reacted towards one another.

***

Kitty walked through the front doors of the mansion and set her bags at her feet. She had to admit, the establishment she'd be living in was amazing, but it didn't silence that voice in her head telling her she was no longer fit to live in the company of "normal" people.

Charles Xavier, otherwise known as the professor, had led Kitty to his institute. The safe haven was created by Charles Xavier and Eric Lencher for people who possessed "gifts", like herself, to live in harmony and learn control. Charles still managed it all and continued to bring in new mutants, whereas Eric had broken off and started his own coven known as "The Brotherhood".

"Kitty, I'd like you to meet some of the other residents." Charles said in his consoling and accepting voice.

At the end of the staircase was a seating area. Two velvet maroon sofas with gold armrests sat parallel to each other with glossy chestnut end tables on either side. At the other end of the sofas was an old fashioned ottoman with dark, forest green padding and rusted brown legs that matched the end tables. On one of the couches sat Scott and Jean who were quietly talking amongst themselves, while Ororo's tall and stunning frame was graciously seated in the armchair. At the end of the other sofa was Logan shielded behind the morning's newspaper. Xavier gestured for Kitty to follow him as he wheeled himself towards the group.

"Kitty, I'd like you to meet Scott Summers, also known as 'Cyclops'. He is the team leader of what we call the 'X-men'. I believe we explained that to you back at your house."

Scott stood up and held his hand out to shake Kitty's.

"Nice to meet you, Kitty."

"Scott's power is the ability to shoot laser-like energy from his eyes. Without those crimson sunglasses, he has no control over his power. And this is Jean Grey. I believe you met her back at the house when we paid you a visit. She possesses telepathic abilities much like my own."

"I don't think I'm nearly as strong as you, professor."

"I wouldn't be too sure about that. Someday your power could surpass my own."

"It's nice to meet you again, Kitty. I'm really glad that you're giving this a chance. I know it was the best decision I ever made."

Kitty smiled meekly at Jean's comment and shook her hand. Ororo had stood up and slowly walked over to the professor's side. She was a very beautiful and graceful woman. Her skin was a rich bronze colour that, despite her true age, kept a youthful glow. Her hair fell just below her waist and was a brilliant, pure white colour. Kitty felt a sense of warmth and comfort when she looked into Ororo's atmospheric blue eyes that sparkled as she smiled.

"This is Ororo, also known as 'Storm'. I think the name is self explanatory. She is another teacher at this institute. She too will be helping you to gain more control over your newly found gifts."

"Hello, Kitty. Welcome to the institute. If there is anything you need, I'm always around. Don't hesitate to ask."

Kitty nodded and her comfortable feeling towards Ororo was reassured at her introduction.

"And this is Logan, also known as 'Wolverine'. His skeleton is made of indestructible metal which also has given him retractable claws. He is responsible for running all danger room sessions, which you will learn more about as we tour the rest of the mansion."

Logan folded the newspaper back a little bit to catch a glimpse of the "new arrival", and nodded as his formal greeting. He mildly ostracized the fact that Charles had to explain everyone else's powers to the new girl, especially his own.

"You'll have to excuse Logan. He isn't much for words." Scott laughed.

"Where is Kurt? I told him to be down here for Kitty's introduction."

"He's probably thinking of a way not to scare the girl."

Everyone glanced over at Logan as he spoke but never once put down his newspaper. Kitty couldn't help but notice everyone else's expressions at the mention of Kurt trying not to "scare" her. If anything, this Logan scared her.

"I'll get him down here." Jean said.

She lightly pressed the tips of her fingers to her temples and furrowed her brow. Kitty assumed that Jean sent this Kurt a telepathic message. Within an instant, a puff of navy blue smoke appeared beside the staircase. All Kitty could smell was the awful stench of sulfur and brimstone. It reminded her of driving through some sort of chemical valley on a hot and muggy day. Kitty could tell by everyone else's reactions towards the smoke that this was an annoying occurrence and no one had quite got used to the stench. Once the smoke cleared away, a young boy stood at the end of the banister staring back at Kitty.

"This is Kurt, also known as 'Nightcrawler'. He has the ability to teleport himself and anything he may be in contact with while doing so."

"Guten tag." Kurt simply nodded his head at Kitty and smiled.

"Hi."

"Kurt hasn't been here very long either. He moved here from Germany about two weeks ago." Charles stated.

Kitty examined Kurt closely. His skin was a light alabaster colour that contrasted nicely with his long navy blue hair. He seemed very fit. She could tell by his black t-shirt that hugged his chest. He wasn't like many of the other boys she had gone to school with. Most of the boys were either super buffed jocks, awkward lanky teenagers, or obese to the point where they waddled. In her mind, he was quite attractive. She couldn't help but smile at how cute his mannerisms were. He seemed to have a lot of energy and life in him. His hands were firmly shoved into the front pockets of his cargo shorts causing his shoulders to push up into a shrug while he smiled an endearing closed mouth grin. However, she almost felt a glimpse of disappointment when she really looked into his eyes. They too were a navy blue colour, much like his hair and the smoke he emerged from, but they seemed dull and lifeless considering how much liveliness he seemed to have emanating from him. She saw nothing scary about this boy; in fact, he seemed to calm Kitty's nerves about being in that institute. She figured she'd enjoy herself much more if this Kurt fellow was going to be there too. Kitty figured Logan was just talking about how abruptly he enters a room when he referred to the "scare" comment.

"Kurt, turn off your watch." Ororo had said in the sort scolding tone a mother would give her child to put back the sweets they threw into the grocery cart.

Kitty twitched as she brought herself out of her little daydream. She recalled watching, quite befuddled, as the brilliant ear to ear smile on Kurt's face slowly caved in and his lips formed into a hard line. He bowed his head and seemed to hesitate. She remembered thinking his demeanor looked as if someone had just said the worst insult you could possibly think of right to his face. Kurt sighed as his right hand hovered over his left wrist before he unhurriedly pushed down a little button on the watch. In an instant, the image of the young and quite handsome boy she had seen seemed to blur like a television station going off air. When the imaged cleared, standing in that normal boy's place, stood a furry, blue, demonic looking excuse for a human. Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped as she covered her hand over her mouth to stop the inevitable scream.

Kitty brought herself out of her daydream of the past and back to the reality of the present. How could she have reacted towards him like that on her first day? She felt hollow as she realized how superficial she had been. Was the only reason she didn't like Kurt more than a friend because of his true appearance? She liked him before he showed his true self, and his watch certainly didn't change how his personality was. Why did she still not feel the same for him as he did for her?

Kitty continued walking at an unsteady pace until she reached the door to the library where she stopped and sighed. From the other side of the door she could hear the professor talking. She figured Kurt was already in the room, and hoped some of the discussion had already been over. Kitty anticipated it was all the parts she didn't want to hear. She poked her head through the door as not to disturb the conversation with the creaking of the door hinges. Sure enough, the professor was there seated across from Kurt. Xavier's elbows rested on the arms of his chair with his fingers folded on top of one another, like someone in prayer. The immense fireplace was lit and provided enough lighting for the entire room, highlighting Xavier's gentle face. However, she noticed a floor lamp flicked on behind the armchair that Kurt was hunched over in, casting eerie shadows over his sullen face.

"Kitty, I'm glad to see you came. Please, take a seat."

She took a deep breath and pulled the rest of her body through the solid door. Kurt never even looked up. He was crouched in the corner of the large chair with his tail lying limply beside him. He hugged his mid section close to his body as he turned his face to the fireplace in the opposite direction of Kitty. It seemed as if he was hiding from her. The intense light above him served as some form of spotlight, closely pointing out his every flaw.

"What did you want to talk about?" Kitty said taking a seat beside Kurt in an empty armchair.

"Well, we were discussing what to do about today's events."

"Why do you need me?"

"Well, Kitty. The school called."

She felt her heart stop as the blood rushed all the way from her toes to her face.

"What did they say?"

"They didn't really express how they wanted to deal with this situation very clearly. But the overall tone was outraged. However they didn't come right out and say he was expelled. "

"I still don't understand what this has to do with me."

"Well, I have arranged a meeting with the staff members of the school and the head of the school board to discuss some of their concerns. I'd like you to be there."

"Why me?"

"Because they are going to ask questions regarding what happened after he left the cafeteria, and you were the only one with him until Jean, Scott, Evan and Rogue got there."

"So is there going to be a…"

"They don't want me there."

Kurt remained perfectly immobile until he interrupted the conversation. He stayed in his same position, bunched up in the corner of the chair with his face turned away. All he wanted was to scream as loud as he possibly could. The entire trial had made him more irate each time he thought about it. He became even more infuriated at the fact that two people were talking about it right in front of him and not even acknowledging his presence.

_Why me? What did I ever do to deserve this? Especially for my entire life!_

"Now, Kurt. That's not exactly what they said, which is why I have arranged this meeting with the school. We are going to come to a consensus."

"Yeah, I wonder how that's going to turn out." Kurt's voice was dripping with sarcasm which was highly out of character from his usually cheery manners.

"Kurt, you have to give the teachers a chance if you want to be given one." Kitty cooed.

Kurt exhaled and bit his lip as the tip of his tail started to twitch which caught Kitty's attention causing her to involuntarily stare down at it. Every time his tail was noticeably moving all he wanted to do was rip it right off. Very heated, Kurt snatched the appendage with his hand and quickly turned to face Kitty. His piercing yellow eyes seemed to be staring straight into the depths of her soul. At that point, she would have given anything for him to actually be wearing his holowatch to hide the sheer fury on his face. Although she knew it was a horrible thing to think about someone as sweet and wonderful as Kurt usually was (especially since he was her best friend) but he really did resemble the demon he always thought he was at that exact moment.

"You want _me_ to give _them_ a chance?"

Kitty swallowed hard. She had no idea what to say, partly because she was slightly paralyzed in fear to say anything at all.

"Did any of them give me or anybody else a chance? Nein! We had to hide who we were for most of our high school lives! I've had to hide myself for my entire life! I've never, ever been given a cha-"

"Kurt, that's enough." Xavier's voice intruded. "We need to settle a few things between the two of you before I'd like to speak with you privately, Kurt. Understood?"

Kitty turned to face the professor and nodded while Kurt huddled himself back in the corner of the chair. He pulled his knees up to his chin while both his hands tightly gripped onto his tail, which looked as if it wanted to escape, in his lap.

"Good. Now, Kitty, I want you to know that nobody holds you responsible for what happened to Kurt today. Although I am disappointed that none of you made any efforts to help him before his image inducer was removed, I also understand that none of you wanted to jeopardize your own graduation."

"But that's not why I didn't help him sooner!"

"Then what held you back?"

It was quite apparent that Charles did not want to invade Kitty's mind for this conversation, otherwise he would have no reason to talk to her. He knew that if she had an issue, she would say it out loud in such an imperative conversation.

"I was scared… I couldn't even move. Everything seemed to happen so fast that my brain couldn't even process what was happening fast enough for me to react. And…" Kitty looked over at Kurt. She could feel her eyes stinging with tears as all the anger in him melted away and was replaced by complete sorrow that stretched itself across his face. "I'm so sorry, Kurt. I don't know what else to say. Believe me; if I could go back I would have done something to stop it and you wouldn't be in this mess."

"It's fine. You're not the reason all of this happened… I could have teleported away too. But if I could go back in time I'd…"

"Kurt!"

The professor cut Kurt off for the second time. Kitty started to feel uneasy as she knew Charles had to be reading Kurt's thoughts and he was trying to stop him from saying whatever it was that he going to say. She was thankful for that, because she knew she did not want to hear it. Kurt looked at the mesmerizing flames in the fireplace. The blazes seemed to be dancing that pulled Kurt in a small hypnotized state. His hands were still wrapped tightly around his tail, which writhed free from his grip and brought Kurt back to reality.

"Kitty, you're not the reason why any of this happened. And you're not the only person who could have stopped it. I told you that earlier." He said as his eyes met Kitty's.

Kitty had a hard time controlling her emotions that day, especially when Kurt seemed to have a hard time doing so as well. She looked down at her hands that twiddled in her lap. She thought about the conversation she and Kurt had earlier that day. She knew he was still holding some feelings back. Things he was too embarrassed to talk about or things that he knew would make her upset.

"I know… but…" Kitty stammered.

"Kitty, there was nothing you could have done. And like you said before; they would have found a way to do it. I guess, in a way, I'm glad they did it. When you told me that earlier, a million different scenarios went through my mind of how much worse it could have been."

"I know... I still feel bad though."

Kitty leaned over the armrest of her chair to hug Kurt. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, while Kurt lightly patted her back with both his hands. The feeling of his velvet soft fur on her cheek was strangely comforting. It reminded her of being a young child again, clinging tightly onto a stuffed bear when the lights went out at night. However, Kurt did not feel as comforted in her arms as she did in his. He knew, no matter how many times or how tightly she embraced him, they would never be more than "just friends", so what was the point in getting his hopes up?

"Thank you, Kitty for your time. But it is getting late and regardless of today's events, you have school tomorrow and I'd like to speak with Kurt privately."

Kurt released his grip on Kitty before she slid her arms from his neck. She stood up and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"Alright. Goodnight professor, 'night Kurt."

"Goodnight Kitty. I will talk more with you tomorrow about the school meeting."

Kitty looked over at Kurt with hope in her eyes as she half smiled Kurt's "favourite" smile. She knew Kurt still had more to talk about with the professor and the whole school thing still needed to be sorted out, but she felt that he was coming around and that everything would be okay soon enough. The conversation seemed to assure her that there wasn't anything for her to worry about. Kurt smiled back as he usually did when all her features lifted up like that, but this time his smile was about as genuine as his image had been in the last three years. He watched emptily as Kitty turned her back and walked right through the door.

"Now, Kurt, I want you to know that I am not going to read your thoughts. However, I do expect that you tell me everything. And don't think that I won't read your mind if I think I need to. I can read faces just as well as minds, so if I see that you're lying I will read your thoughts and find the truth. Is that understood?"

Kurt nodded. It was very unsettling to see the professor fall out of his usually calm character and actually threaten to use his powerful mind to examine someone's thoughts. Kurt never wanted to mess with the professor on a regular basis, and he especially didn't want to now that he saw that how concerned Xavier was about his well being.

"Good. Now, earlier Kitty mentioned that you need to give the teachers a chance if you want to be given one. You were going to say you've never been given a chance in your life. Could you expand upon that?"

Kurt hesitated. A lot of things he said earlier were spur the moment and blurted out because of his anger. He knew he was fortunate in some ways. After all, he was given a chance when he came to the institute and that he was still alive after all he endured back in Germany.

"Well, I do know that I have been given chances in the past. I wouldn't be here if I hadn't been given any. I got to come to this school. And obviously my mother and father gave me a chance when they found me."

"Then why do you feel like you've been denied other chances in life?"

"Look at me. I was denied a normal life. I know every other mutant in the world probably feels the same way, but most of them can at least go out in public. And a lot of them didn't know they were a mutant until they were in their teens! But me and the small handful of us who look completely different from everyone else were shunned and feared by everyone our whole lives. It only gets worse when you develop your powers. I just wish I could change my genetics somehow and be like everyone else."

Charles retained his serenity but he was truly hurt. In his eyes mutants were extraordinary people. He had always valued his students for how they dealt with the stress of their reveal at the school. Of course they all had their bad days, but he was always very proud them in general for not letting the tension eat away at them. It was Kurt's last remark that really troubled the professor. Out of all his students, Kurt was the one he admired most in terms of accepting himself and to hear that he really did have a very hard time dealing with who and what he was, was very upsetting to hear.

"Kurt, I understand why you would feel that way. I developed my gifts at an early age and I would have given anything to be like everyone else again. I can only imagine the feeling of never knowing any level of normality, but there is a reason why you are the way you are. I know your parents raised you as a Catholic, and it is my understanding that God has a reason for everything."

"At this point I wonder if God is even real. I've never done anything wrong in my entire life! Why did he choose me to carry all of this? If anything, the entire Brotherhood should have to deal with what I do everyday. They're the ones whose appearance should match their heart."

"Why do you feel your appearance is a burden or a punishment? Why couldn't it be some form of blessing?"

"If this is a blessing from God, then I don't want to know what his punishments are. And why would he 'bless' someone to look like this and allow them to be accused of being a dämon their whole life?"

"Have you ever taken into consideration that maybe His plan involved blessing you with this particular form because he believed you would be strong enough to live with it, or to prove something to the world."

"Like what? That God has a sense of humour?"

"Kurt, I know everyone in this institute and even the Brotherhood resent the fact that they are mutants. We all receive persecution and discrimination, but we all get through it. However, I do understand that you face the most prejudice than the rest of us here, but I still believe you have the capability to get through it."

"What makes you say that? I've been living in…" Kurt took a death breath and exhaled slowly, "… this body since I was born and I haven't come to terms with myself. What makes you think I can do it now?"

"Kurt, I built this institute to help mutants to cope with their powers. I have taught or I am in the process of teaching everyone here to control their powers. Your physical mutations are no different for me to help you deal with."

Kurt looked down at his deformed hands that rested lifelessly in his lap. The massive room was completely silent except for the flickering of the flames in the fireplace and the sound of Kurt's tail sweeping across the maroon carpet. He had so many things running through his mind. So many unanswered questions, so many regrets and Kitty.

"What am I supposed to do tomorrow?"

"Well, considering I haven't talked to your teachers yet and it is fairly late, I would suggest that you stay here at the institute. Get some rest and have some quiet time alone to get your thoughts together."

Kurt actually wanted to thank God for the first time in a while. He wouldn't have to hear any of the cutting and insensitive words thrown at him if he went to school. And he was going to get something he had avoided in the past: quiet time. He could think about the situation and like the professor said, get his thoughts together.

"Thank you, professor."

"You're welcome, Kurt. Now, you should get some sleep. We will talk more tomorrow if you wish."

"Alright. Goodnight, professor."

"Goodnight, Kurt."

Kurt stood up and walked towards the door. He had no will or energy to teleport. Why remind himself he was a mutant by exploiting it? He walked through the grand hallways and up the extravagant staircase to the bedroom hall. All the while he was thinking about his past. His parents back in Germany, what life was like for him there, and Kitty.

Kurt's bedroom was the second last room on the left side of the hallway. All was hushed as the rest of the students slept peacefully. As he headed towards his room, he passed by Kitty and Rogue's door and stopped. Kurt had always had passion, whether it was hatred towards himself, love of the circus, or even another person. However, he had never had more passion towards anything else than he did for Kitty. He knew that he'd never have her, but why did he still have that glimmer of hope deep in the pit of his stomach?

"_That's another chance I've been denied… a relationship with the only person I'll ever love."_

At that point he didn't even care. And in a puff of smoke Kurt was gone.

When he got to his room things were different than they had been every other night. He had no artificial image to remind himself of what he could be; instead it was the image of what he always was. Kurt changed into his night clothes and crept into his bed. As he turned out the lights he was lost in his thoughts before the veil of exhaustion covered his mind. One particular thought came into his head that hadn't before. He had so many questions about his past that his parents never wanted to answer. But he knew someone he could seek answers from; Mystique. And with that, he fell into a deep, sleep filled with the troubles and anxiety of what the next day would bring.

**Well lads and lassies! There is chapter five! It's all done! And I know it's kind of dry, but BELIEVE ME! I am actually so happy I finished that chapter because after this I'm so excited to get into it!! I hope you guys are still enjoying it as much as I love writing it, like I've mentioned so many times before. I actually get all my homework and such done so much quicker because I want to write this story. Well chapter six will be up as soon as I can get it up!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry for taking SO long! As always, thank you for the reviews! I know that last chapter was a bit boring. I'm getting a tad confused though. I've had many people ask me to have Kurt speak more German words but I've also had some people telling me to get rid of them. SO…. I have decided to obliterate them EXCEPT when he is angry/swearing haha. But thank you so much for all the suggestions! And now I'm excited because now we can get into the juicy stuff! I hope you're still enjoying yourselves! And I'm so sorry for how long it took me to put up this chapter and how dry the last one was. The end of the school year approached too quickly and I needed to get all my projects done, and I had one exam haha, and of course going to the beach and such, and I got a full time job which I quit because I was allergic to it, then the new school year started where I went back to high school for half a year (kind of like grade 12 x like Scott, Jean and Rogue) and now I have a new job where I work a lot but it's a good place and I'm done high school and I got accepted to the university I wanted. But now I CAN WRITE! Enjoy and sorry again! I might rewrite this chapter in the future. I wrote so many different parts of it at so many different times. **

Chapter 6

Rogue, Scott, Jean, Evan and Kitty had pulled into the parking lot of the school. The unruly silence since the day before had lingered through the night and into the morning. Nobody was looking forward to the accusations made by the staff and students, and especially what would be the verdict for Kurt. Kitty had been in the back seat the whole time just staring out the window. It had started to rain on the way to school, and she was mesmerized by the rain drops streaming across the windows. The click of the keys and the sudden stillness of the engine brought her out of her daze.

"Today is just like every other day, alright." Scott didn't even turn to look at anybody. He kept his gaze on the windshield. "And no matter what, we're going to stand up for Kurt. Don't let anybody get away with anything. Okay?"

Everyone nodded, even though Scott didn't see them. He didn't need to; it was an order not a suggestion. When the four mutants got out of the car, they were already greeted with unwelcome stares. They hadn't faced that much non verbal discrimination since they were first exposed to the entire school. In fact, it was almost worse. Not to mention that the person, or "thing" that all their derogatory glares were directed to was absent. The Xavier students walked solemnly towards the steps of the school, hoping that they could avoid the silent persecution. Unfortunately, they were wrong. As soon as they walked through the doors of the school it was almost as if everyone simultaneously stopped what they were doing just to give their unspoken resentment towards their mutant peers.

"_Yeah, today is going to be just like any other day."_ Kitty thought to herself.

They continued to walk to their lockers. Scott, Rogue and Jean's lockers were in the west side of the school, while Kitty and Evan's were in the east side. Usually it would be Kitty, Evan and Kurt walking together, but today was going to be different. Kitty and Evan walked down the hall. The "normal" students who happened to be in the hallway at that time would lean in closer to whomever they were talking to, to make some snide remark.

"Wow, it's pretty sad that one person can cause the whole school to act like this." Evan whispered to Kitty.

Kitty kept her stare straight ahead, although she knew people were snickering at her and probably saying horrible things about any of the Xavier students, especially Kurt, she wanted to pretend none of it was happening.

"Hey, where's blue boy?"

Evan and Kitty both shifted their eyes to look at one another. That unforgettable, pompous voice that all the X-men came to know and loathe: Pietro. They tried to ignore him and continued walking until, with a flash of silver, there he was right in front of them.

"What the hell do you want, Pietro?"

"Oh nothing… I was just wondering where my fuzzy blue pal was today." He grinned. "I knew he'd be too much of a chicken shit to come to school again. Typical."

Kitty could feel the blood rush to her face. She would have given anything to be able to punch Pietro right in his arrogant face. Before she knew it, her hands were clenched into little white balls at her side, and her bottom lip almost became numb as her teeth bit hard into it. Evan put his hand on her shoulder in attempt to stop her before she blew up.

"Oh my God, Pietro! Shut up! Do you have any idea how much pain you've caused him? What on earth did he ever do to you? What purpose did revealing his appearance to the whole school serve, other than for your own sick pleasure?"

All Pietro could do was let out an obnoxious laugh that rattled Kitty to no end. He was such a jerk that he couldn't even give her a straight answer, not to mention that his band of "loyal followers" weren't too far behind to back him up.

"_My_ own pleasure? Why should he be able to prance around pretending he's just like everyone else?"

"Because he _is_ just like everyone else!" Evan stepped in.

"Oh, so I suppose freaky, blue, demonic people are a common sight at the X-men household?"

"Pietro, shut up! Don't talk about him that way! He is just like everyone else! Even you! You guys are mutants along with us and Kurt exposed himself to the school as a mutant. Isn't that good enough?"

"Clearly it isn't. He may be a mutant, but he is far from being like any of us. Just tell him the Brotherhood says 'hi'. Can you do that for me? Thanks." Pietro smirked and patted Kitty on the cheek.

With that, the Brotherhood made their way down the hall. Fred and Todd had turned around to catch a glimpse of any frustration Pietro might have caused Evan and Kitty. Kitty blinked as she realized two members were missing.

"Kitty, don't worry about it. They're just assholes because that's the only thing they're good at. Besides, isn't there a meeting tonight to decide what's going to happen to Kurt?"

"Yeah, I have to go to that too."

"How come?"

"Because they want to know what happened after he left the cafeteria."

"Didn't you phase him to the basement?"

"Yeah."

"Is that going to get you in trouble?"

"I don't really care. Besides, I don't think I'll be punished too badly. It's not like I hurt anyone."

"True enough."

Evan looked over at Kitty as they continued walking to their lockers. He could tell she was totally distraught from the whole situation.

"Kitty, don't worry about it. I know it's hard when people tell you that, but the professor won't let anything bad happen to Kurt. Just get through the day. It'll be alright."

Kitty cracked a faint smile at the sign of Evan's unusual but genuine affection.

"Thanks."

The day went by just how it began: a lot of stares and whispers. The entire human population of Bayville evidently displayed their disapproval with the previous day's events. In all of Kitty's classes her teachers continued their lessons like nothing had happened, except for the suspicious glances they would shoot any mutant student here or there. Anytime a teacher did it to Kitty, she just stared right back.

Finally the day was over. Kitty couldn't remember anything that had happened. It was just a mindless day that proceeded with no real excitement or anything she wanted to remember. The student body was saving all the real stimulation for when Kurt would be there. All Kitty could focus on was what would happen that evening.

Kurt was sitting on the couch of the living room watching television. Usually he would have kept his image inducer on the whole day out of courtesy towards the other residents at the mansion. But now, he had just given up. What was the point? The rest of the X-men knew what he looked like, and now the entire school did. He had no reason to pretend he was normal anymore.

The students had all arrived home from school. Everyone either went up to their rooms to do their homework or to the kitchen to attack the refrigerator. Kitty hesitantly found her way towards the living room. She stood in the grand doorway looking in. There he was. On the long navy blue sectional bunched up in the corner seat with his left hand grasping his right forearm and the other hand busy flipping through the channels. Kitty could tell he was still bothered. He looked so disheveled. He wore a loose pair of denim shorts that displayed his legs he was so self conscious of, a green short sleeved shirt, no socks to hide his two-toed feet, and his tail slightly twitching alongside him. Kitty walked through the door and towards the couch where Kurt was.

"Hey."

Kurt's tail flickered at the sudden sound of another person entering his presence. He quickly looked over to see who had come to join him and then turned his attention back to flipping through channels.

"How are you holding up?"

Kurt shrugged slightly at Kitty's question. She stared at him and studied his demeanor. His eyes reflected the inconsistent image of the television; his steady breathing gave off the impression that he was calm, but she could see his tail, the appendage he hated the most about his body, fluttering acting as his own personal lie detector.

"I'm fine." Kurt said in an unusual monotone voice in comparison to his usual cheery German accented enthusiasm.

"What did you do today?"

"Nothing."

"Do you mind if I sit?"

"I don't care."

Kitty took a seat in the middle of the couch and kept her eyes on Kurt's face. She could tell she wasn't going to get much of a conversation out of him, unless she really tried.

"Are you all set for tonight?"

No answer. He just kept his zombie-like stare on the sixty inch plasma television screen. Kitty looked over at it when she realized he had stopped surfing the channels. It was some random commercial advertising an amazing brand of dish soap. Kitty figured he was probably thinking about a lot and he had forgotten to continue flipping through the TV stations. After a long pause he finally spoke.

"I kind of hope they expel me."

That caught Kitty off guard.

"Why? You're so close to graduation."

"The professor could probably home school me. Or I could go back to Germany. That works too."

That last one made Kitty's heart sink.

"Well, you've only got a few months left and you can forget it ever happened."

"How can I forget it ever happened?" Kurt said, quite annoyed.

"Well, you can move as far away as you want for college or university."

"Kitty, I appreciate what you're trying to do. But I don't think I'm going to be forgetting this… ever. I really don't care what they come up with. They can lock me in a basement and feed me fish heads for the rest of my life for all I care."

Kurt went back to aimlessly flipping through the channels while he shifted in his seat. His face was contorted with a sour expression. Kitty didn't want to give up on trying to make her friend feel better.

"Well, I don't think they'll do _that_. If anything, they'll…"

Kurt's eyes shifted over to Kitty's direction while she paused. He just looked at her while she sat there searching her mind for something to say. He couldn't help holding back a small grin. She was so beautiful in his eyes. At that point she reminded him of a young child trying to pronounce a big word.

"I don't even know where to go with that thought." She sheepishly chuckled.

Kurt allowed faint little smile to spread across his dark blue lips. Kitty couldn't help but smile back at him. He didn't need to be a mind reader to tell that Kitty was authentically trying to make him feel better.

_Who would have thought someone so stunning would have the heart to match? _He thought.

Kurt turned his attention back to the television and finally landed on some sports highlights. Kitty felt quite accomplished. She must have made _some_ impact on his mood for him to crack a smile and to finally stop surfing channels on their one thousand station satellite dish. They both sat there in their comfortable silence. Time seemed to fly by. Both Kitty and Kurt had a lot on their minds. Suddenly, their silence was broken.

"Kurt… Kitty..."

They both turned to see Ororo's tall, dark frame standing in the entrance way to the living room.

"Are you ready?"

"For what?" Kitty blurted out.

Kurt exhaled and bit his bottom lip. Ororo caught his expression and compassionately smiled.

"It's time for the meeting at the school."

"Oh…" Kitty said looking over at Kurt.

"You two can get in the van while I get the professor."

Kurt sighed and turned off the television. He dropped the remote beside him and let his arm fall into his lap. Kitty didn't really have anything to say. Obviously he wasn't looking forward to this at all. Who would? Kurt didn't even wait for Kitty, he just teleported right to the garage leaving her on the couch.

_I guess his good mood wore off a lot quicker than I anticipated._

The ride there was awkwardly silent. Ororo drove there while the professor sat in the passenger seat. Kurt could tell they were having a mental conversation. He figured they were talking about him.

_That's so rude. If they have something to say, they should just say it in front of me... Again! If I were normal, I wouldn't have to deal with people having conversations about me in their heads! _

Kurt and Kitty sat in the middle seats of the van in silence, both staring out the windows. The rain had stopped early that afternoon leaving puddles behind as the remains. The sky was a violet colour with splashes of vibrant oranges and reds leaving sparkles across the puddles on the sides of the road.

Kitty sat there just marveling at the sky. After such a cloudy and rainy day, there still managed to be a beautiful sunset. She hoped this situation would be the same way; beginning rough and ending smoothly. Very discreetly, Kitty shifted her eyes to Kurt. She hadn't even noticed that he had turned on his image inducer until she looked at him. The professor must have had an extra one somewhere. It was so strange seeing him in his "human" form now that his secret was out, even though he used to spend more time with that false image as his appearance than his true self. She didn't like it one bit. He looked so uncomfortable now that she knew all the precautions he used to take and how hard it must have been for him.

The already uneasy silence was interrupted by the sudden stillness of the vehicle as Ororo pulled into the school's parking lot. Kurt looked out the window as if he had just woken up from a deep sleep. His dull, holographic blue eyes looked at the school in newfound perplexing horror. He felt as if someone had dropped three hundred pounds into each arm and told him to walk a mile.

"Kurt, I want you to know that Principal Kelly agreed to have this meeting with us. Therefore, I believe that he is just as eager to settle this situation as we are. It will be alright." Xavier's calming voice filled the van.

_Is that everyone's favourite word to say to me? When will they see that it's not always going to be alright? I've been told that my whole life and nothing ever is!_

Charles' brow furrowed. Kurt cringed knowing that the professor probably heard his little mental outburst.

"Well, nothing is going to get done if we just sit here." Ororo said. "Let's get this over with."

Ororo got out of the car and helped the professor out of the van and into his wheelchair. Kitty unbuckled her seatbelt and looked over at Kurt, who was still strapped in.

"Kurt? Are you going to get out?"

Kurt slowly exhaled and hesitated as he finally undid his seatbelt and rested his hand on the handle of the door. A million thoughts were rushing through his head like twenty people crowded into a small room.

_Why do I need to be here? Why can't the professor do this by himself? I don't care what they come up with... Why does Kitty need to be here, for that matter? What's her role in this?_

Kurt flopped his head back against the seat and looked up at the ceiling of the van.

"Kurt…"

Kitty bit her lip. She didn't know where to go from there. She had no words left to say to him. Nothing she could say would comfort him and nothing would make the situation any better. Kurt slowly opened the sliding door and unhurriedly got out of the van and dragged his feet to the front of the school. He looked as if he was leaning forward on an awkward angle that looked painful. Then Kitty remembered Kurt's remark about walking upright. She figured the professor still hadn't changed his inducer and that he was walking at his comfortable angle.

Kurt felt so empty. It was a feeling he couldn't quite describe. He pushed on the front doors of the school. The sound startled him and sent a quick shiver up his back. Kurt was standing in the front hallway of the school. He looked around. Painful memories burned into his mind that happened only a day earlier. Even the smell of the school hit him like a flying brick.

The professor, Ororo and Kitty had walked in the school and headed for the principal's office. Kitty kept walking but noticed that Kurt had fallen behind.

"Kurt?"

Kurt was walking about ten feet behind the rest of the group. He felt as if his stomach was performing some kind of circus act. He didn't even bother to hide his tail. Instead, he held onto it, gripping the unwanted appendage so securely that he actually felt pain, almost like someone putting a tight rubber band on their finger. It looked awkward from the outside looking in but Kurt really didn't care. He could feel his fur matting up. He hadn't groomed himself leaving his fur feeling like a curly dog as opposed to the usual satin soft feel.

Kitty slowed her pace so Kurt could catch up. Kurt looked up and noticed her. His tail writhed in his hands as if it was trying to escape. The thought that he had to physically hold his tail so it didn't thrash around irritated him as his hands gripped tighter around the limb. However, when Kurt looked at Kitty and the compassion she was showing for him just by waiting made him feel strangely calm and he relaxed his grip. But he figured the professor had something to do with that.

Even though his inducer hid a lot of his true emotions Kitty could see the pain and confusion in his face.

"Kurt. I know this probably doesn't mean much right now, but everything will work out. It always does."

_You got that right._

"Thanks, Kitty. But honestly, I think what I would like to happen, never will."

Kitty knew what that was and how unlikely it was.

Even walking at a slow pace, it seemed to take only seconds to get to the office. Ororo and Charles turned around to face Kitty and Kurt.

"Now, I want you two just to stay calm." The professor's calm voice crooned. "Principal Kelly is not going to be hostile. Even if he shows any tendencies, I won't hesitate to use any power on him. Understood?"

Kurt and Kitty nodded simultaneously. All Kurt could think about was what lay ahead.

Ororo lightly tapped on the steel violet door that read _Principal Kelly _in bold black letters on the glass before a muffled "Come in" made Kurt feel weak. Ororo gracefully opened the door and smiled at Kurt. It didn't help.

The room was large with a very high ceiling. Kurt hadn't been in there since his first day of school when he arrived in Bayville and no one even knew mutants attended the school. It had changed since Mystique posed as the principal. The desk was against the far wall with three empty, brown, leather chairs on the opposite side of the wall, which was where they headed.

Kurt never would want to admit it but, he would have given anything for Mystique to be the current principal. At least she had some understanding of Kurt's condition. But then again, Kurt hated her more than anything. If it wasn't for her then none of this would have happened.

Principal Kelly was sitting in his chair looking over what seemed like files. His desk was organized. Even the papers he had strewn across the surface looked like they were in order. He didn't even bother to get up when Charles, Ororo, Kitty and Kurt reached the desk. That did not settle any of Kurt's worries.

Ororo wheeled the professor to an empty spot beside one of the brown chairs. Kitty sat in the middle chair and Kurt seated himself beside her on the edge of his seat. He couldn't help but sit there and stare wide eyed at the man who was going to decide the course of his education. Kurt swallowed hard and his tail started to squirm from his agitation. He tightened his grasp again.

"Principal Kelly. I am Professor Xavier. This is Ororo Munroe, Kitty Pryde and Kurt Wagner."

After what was only a few seconds, but long enough for Kurt, the principal finally looked up from his papers. He scanned the four mutants in his presence over his glasses. When he stopped at Kurt he raised one of his eyebrows, eyeing him from head to toe.

"Well, I must say, the boy I see here certainly doesn't fit the description of what I've been told by the other students."

Kurt's stomach sunk.

"What have you been told?" Kitty blurted out.

The professor silently scolded her for her rudeness while Principal Kelly slowly turned his glance from Kurt to Kitty.

"Well, I took it upon myself to ask the other students what happened. I don't think I need to tell you that all their answers were very detailed."

Kurt was hard enough on himself. Kitty could only imagine what the school had said about him.

The professor spoke up.

"Mr. Kelly... It was my understanding that we would be meeting other members of the board as well. Have you already reached a decision or are you willing to negotiate the future of Kurt's education at Bayville High School?"

Principal Kelly paused. Kurt swore his own heartbeat was so loud, everyone in the room could hear it.

"Unfortunately none of them could make it this evening. However I am willing to negotiate… I've been told that Miss Pryde here helped Kurt _sink_ through the floor… Enlighten me." He smirked.

Kitty felt all the blood escape her face as she recalled her role in Kurt's escape. She looked at the professor who nodded for her to proceed. Kitty took a deep unsteady breath and began.

"Well, I assume everyone has told you what happened before that."

There was an awkward silence and Kitty assumed Principal Kelly had heard everything that happened except it would have been the biased version. She looked over at Kurt who kept his stare straight at the principal.

"Anyway, I saw him standing up there all by himself like some kind of circus freak. So I grabbed him and pulled him through the floor to the basement so they'd stop staring at him."

"What do you mean when you say you _pulled him through the floor_?"

Kitty looked at the professor for some more guidance. His face was very calming and reassuring.

"My… gift, I guess you could call it, is this."

Kitty looked at Kurt and reached for his hand. Kurt hesitantly turned his gaze away from Principal Kelly's intimidating face to Kitty's angelic blue eyes. She smiled desperately and Kurt apprehensively let one hand relieve his tail from his grip and offered it to Kitty. When she grabbed his arm she was mildly shocked. No matter how many times she had seen him with his inducer on she always expected to feel normal human skin when they had any sort of contact. Usually Kurt would have worn a long sleeved shirt to protect his fur from exposure but she could see he had given up.

Kitty watched her hand as she took Kurt's wrist and phased right through Principal Kelly's desk. There was total silence except for the faint rustling of papers on his desk as Kitty demonstrated her ability, followed by another long pause. The principal's face morphed into an expression of disgust.

Kurt felt his tail moving around again. All he wanted to do was grab a pair of scissors from the principal's desk and cut it right off. It caught Principal Kelly's attention for the first time he noticed that Kurt was clutching the tail he had heard so much about that day.

_Why didn't I tie it down? Of all the days!_

"What happened after the two of you entered the basement?"

"Well, Kurt was kind of spaced out, I guess you could call it, and I was trying to think of how I could get him out of the school."

"So you used your powers in the school and tried to assist in truancy?"

"What? No. It was an emergency!"

"Just continue."

Kitty, Kurt and even Ororo were getting annoyed with the principal's pretentious attitude.

"Anyway, so I couldn't get him to respond to anything and eventually the other four showed up."

"And who might those 'other four' be?"

"They would be students of mine that also attend school here." The professor said.

"So how did you all get out of the school without using the front doors?"

Kitty proceeded to tell Principal Kelly everything about their escape, right down to the last detail. When she was finished, he leaned back in his chair with his hands behind his head and sighed.

Kurt's whole body began to tremble. For once in his life he would have loved to hear those booming radio voices from his alarm clock to wake him up from this nightmare.

"How are you able to appear normal?" Principal Kelly questioned a little too bold for Kurt's liking.

"Excuse me?"

"Why are you able to come across as a human being right now?"

Kurt looked over at the professor, who had remained rather calm throughout this whole conference, hoping for some direction. The "human being" comment was a little harsh. Those simple little words had so much depth to them when Kurt really thought about it.

"Umm… well its special… I'm not too sure how it works but basically it creates a fake image over my real one."

"Would you mind turning it off?"

"Sorry?"

Ororo, Kitty and the professor looked at Kurt. Kitty was fighting back tears. Once again Kurt turned to the professor for assistance.

_It's alright, Kurt. I won't let anything negative happen._

The whole room went deathly silent again. Ororo and Kitty both felt the same sense of sorrow for Kurt.

Every thought Kurt had in his head vanished. There was nothing to distract him from removing his watch or to soften the blow of the reality. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes as if he was jumping off a high diving board, and like a band-aid, took his watch off as quickly as possible and waited for Kelly's response.

"Hmm."

For Kurt, that was a new reaction. He opened his eyes to see the principal with a sinister grin on his face and almost what seemed like a sense of excitement. That wasn't something Kurt wanted to see. He started to feel panic stricken.

"Well. This makes my decision final."

That was not how he had anticipated that evening. He thought it would take at least a few days before a resolution had been made. And why did showing his appearance finalize this decision?

Principal Kelly rested his elbows on his desk and crossed his hands. The smirk on his lips looked as if he was getting some kind of satisfaction from whatever his decision was.

"You have two choices, as far as I'm concerned." He said, looking at the professor. "Choice one would be that all your students are expelled for using their powers at the school and denied graduation... Or…"

Kurt's head felt full of air, his eyes and throat burned while his stomach felt like it was turning inside out. Even his tail had finally laid still. He already didn't care for choice one.

Kitty took a deep, vacillating breath and looked over at Kurt.

"…Or I will dismiss that your students used their powers, considering none of the human students were affected by it, and everyone is allowed to continue their schooling here under one circumstance."

It was final. Principal Kelly really was getting a cheap thrill by leaving Kurt on the edge. His tail started to squirm in his hands again and his legs felt hollow.

"Kurt may attend this school and finish his final year as long as he promises to show up not as the boy that came in, but as the creature I see before me."

**There it is. Like I said, it's kind of sporadic because I wrote it so broken up I guess you could say and I might change it. So many different ways to word things came up in my head and I was having a really hard time. But here it is… for now :P**


	7. Chapter 7

**Well I am back! Thanks for all the lovely reviews!! I'm sorry it's been taking me eons to write more of this fic! I've been horrendously busy these days! I'm in university now and if you're in that boat as well you know it's hectic! But like I said earlier I do intend on finishing this and I am going to make this fairly lengthy. There is a lot that I would like to put into it. There's one part in this that seems kind of "slashy" but believe me, I was never a fan of the slash. I try to fit it as close to the cartoon and reality as I can. It's just friendship, so for you slash fans, don't get your hopes up haha. And as always, I take your suggestions into consideration and I read every single review that is posted! I hope you enjoy chapter 7!!**

Chapter 7:

Kurt had teleported straight to his bedroom from the van after refusing to speak at all during the ride home from the school. Kitty was unspeakably upset with the options Principal Kelly had dealt her friend. She also couldn't believe Kurt actually wanted to think about which option to choose. Why couldn't he be selfish for once?

Ororo was wheeling the professor into the huge entranceway of the mansion while Kitty trailed behind. The silence was almost maddening. Kitty ran out in front of the professor and put her hands on the armrests of his chair.

"Professor, don't make him choose!" Kitty blurted out, her voice breaking at the end as she pleaded with the professor.

The professor folded his hands, keeping his index fingers up and touched them to his lips.

"I'm sorry, Kitty. This is Kurt's decision. Not mine or yours."

"But he can't go back to school! I don't care if _I_ ever go back! You can home-school the rest of us! Just please don't let him go back!"

"Kitty, as much as I wish I could school the six of you, I can't. I am afraid that since all of you are taking different courses and are already more than halfway through the semester, I cannot grant any of you high school diplomas."

"You can teach us next year and we'll all take all the same classes!"

"Kitty, you can't expect all the other students to take the same courses. And the professor can only do so much." Ororo's restful voice cooed.

Kitty looked down at her feet and bit her lip. She felt as if the cliché of one's heart sinking had actually happened to her. The professor reached over and lifted her chin with his gentle hand.

"Unfortunately, Kurt's decision will decide the course of your future education, as well as his own. We must be patient and support any decision he makes."

***

Kurt was curled up on his bed, and he was able to hear everything Kitty and the professor had been talking about. He stared out the open French doors that lead to his balcony. It was dusk and there was a slight warm breeze that softly blew the curtains while the sweet smell of the wet grass and pavement swept across the room. He winced as he bit the inside of his lips and drew a few small drops of blood.

_Why?_

Kurt didn't know what to do. If he didn't return to school, then his friends would have to stay back and be taught by the professor the next year which wasn't even a guarantee, or not graduate at all. But if he did return to the school, then an entirely new dilemma would ensue. Back in Germany only a handful of people had seen Kurt for who he truly was. Even that small number of people were frightened by his appearance and jumped to unspeakable conclusions of demons and creatures of the night. What would an entire school populace do if they were subjected to his appearance for five days a week? After what had happened the previous day, he didn't even want to go there.

Kurt looked down at his arm that wore his watch.

_All you've done is cause trouble! _

He ripped it off, pitched it across the room and rolled over onto his back. So many thoughts invaded his mind. He wondered how things could have been different. What if the Brotherhood had just accepted his refusal to reveal himself? What if Mystique had still been the principal? What if he was just normal? The last thought was the one that really stuck with him.

_What if I had been born normal looking? Better yet, why couldn't I just have been born normal? What purpose do mutants serve? I could have stayed in Germany and lived a normal life and go to a normal school and have normal friends!_

Kurt's breathing became shallow and he could feel tears welling up in his eyes. Before any could actually make their way down his cheek, he wiped his eyes with his furry fingers. Then he thought about Kitty. If he wasn't a mutant then he never would have met her. She was the only person in the entire institute who had helped him deal with a lot of his physical mutation. His love for Kitty was much deeper than friendship and infatuation. Kurt's heart ached every time he remembered that he would have to be benched while all the other guys got to play for her love. Another set of tears clouded his eyes, as he wiped those away he looked at his fuzzy blue hand. His breaths became harder and he ported out onto the balcony.

Kurt perched himself on the balcony rail like some kind of ancient gargoyle and stared out onto the lake. The sun had gone down and the moon had crept its way into the night sky and lit up the lake with a luminous white glow. Kurt thought of being home in Germany when he would play in the backyard with his mother and father. They would make a game out of being quiet as not to wake up the neighbours. His father taught him how to throw a ball and they would play catch until the wee hours of the morning, even if his father had to be at work early the next day. The moon was their light source and if there was no moon, his mother would bundle him up, make some hot chocolate and the three of them would stare up at the stars together until Kurt fell asleep.

A small smile spread across his lips. Kurt had so many fond memories of his mother and father. Even though they had adopted him, they were better parents than his biological mother and estranged father could ever have hoped to be. If he was not abandoned by his mother or if he wasn't a mutant then he never would have known the people who raised him as their own. Kurt felt so empty and confused. He needed some answers.

Kurt was pulled out of his thoughts as he heard the sound of faint footsteps in the hallway followed by a quiet knock on his door.

"Kurt? Can I talk to you for a second?"

It was Rogue. Kurt turned his head to look at his closed door deciding on whether or not to open it.

"Please? I know you're in there. Don't make me bust it down."

Kurt returned his gaze to the stars that illuminated lucid night sky as more memories poured through his mind about his family, when it hit him that Rogue was the closest thing he had in terms of family.

In a puff of smoke Kurt was face to face with Rogue as he opened the door.

"Thanks. I was hoping I wouldn't have to bust down the door." she coughed.

"You're welcome."

Rogue waved her hand in front of her eyes and saw the reluctance Kurt still had in his demeanor. He walked sullenly back to his balcony, this time folding his arms along the banister and resting his chin on them. Rogue followed and leaned her back against the railing.

"Wow… Look at all them stars."

"Yeah..."

Rogue sighed but kept her stare on the stars.

"Kurt, I know you've got a hard decision to make in such a short amount of time." She peeked over at him when he didn't respond. "But, I want to make sure you make the right one."

"What are you getting at?"

"Just don't base your decision on everyone else. Do what's best for you."

Kurt didn't say anything. He continued thinking about his parents in Germany and how he wished he was there with them. Those were the best times of his life and they weren't ever going to come back.

"I don't even know what's best for me right now. The best things I can think of are impossible."

Rogue was no stranger to depression and she could tell Kurt was knocking on its door.

"What do you think you should do?"

She prepared herself for his answer.

"I've got a couple of thoughts."

Rogue turned over and rested her elbows beside Kurt's and dangled her hands over the railing. She looked at her pale forearm under her black lace sleeve that almost seemed to glow in the light of the moon. She compared her gloved hand with five fingers to Kurt's blue furry one with only three. She felt as if someone had kicked her right in the stomach.

Kurt's tail fluttered. Rogue bit her black lips knowing how much hate Kurt had built up towards his appendage and how it moved against his will at any given time.

"First, I wish that stupid thing was gone! That would be great."

She looked away as Kurt's voice was back at its normal volume but anger replaced his usual jovial tone. There was a long pause. Rogue was holding back tears as Kurt was trying not to rip apart his body.

"I wish I could just go back home to Germany. No one knows much about mutants there and I can live with my parents in peace and quiet."

"Kurt, you can't go back to Germany. What are you going to do there? Sit in your room and watch the world go by?"

"What do you think I did before I got here?"

"But you've already seen the outside world! You'll lose your mind! And you'd be denying everyone your great personality. Not to mention if people ever found out about you there."

"What do you mean?"

"Well you said so yourself that they don't know much about mutants over there. They'd probably react differently and jump to unreasonable conclusions."

"It happened before. My parents just played along like they were scared like everybody else and they told everyone they just moved to a different city to 'get away'."

"But Kurt, that's not the life you should be living!"

"I don't care."

"So every time someone sees you, your family is just going to pack up and leave? What are you going to do once you're in your twenties or thirties? You'll never feel love, never get married. What are you going to do when your parents die? Kurt, you've go to face it at some point."

_Never feel love? More like no one will ever love me back. _

"It doesn't matter anyway. I'm not leaving...."

Rogue took in a deep breath and exhaled. There was a long pause. Kurt looked down towards the garden in a lifeless stare.

"Rogue?"

"Yeah?"

"Remember when you had that dream about me as a baby and Mystique?"

How could she forget? The professor made her promise never to elaborate on it to anyone, especially Kurt. Why did he have to bring that up?

"Yeah. Why?"

"What happened with that? Logan went to Germany to check something out… What happened?"

"Kurt, I don't kn…"

"I know you guys know more than you're telling me."

"I don't know anything about it. Just the dream is what I know." Rogue lied.

Kurt jumped back up onto the railing and crossed his arms over his knees.

"You better go to bed. I've got a lot to think about."

Rogue knew that it was best not to bother him especially when he was clearly unstable.

"Fine. Just be sure you make the right decision. That's all I ask."

"I know. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Kurt."

Rogue turned away and slowly headed for the door. Before she opened it she turned back to look at Kurt once more. She shared only a fraction of his pain. They both felt the same about Mystique and about their bodies, but at least she blended in with society. With that, she turned and headed to her bedroom and wiped away her running eyeliner with the back of her gloved wrist.

Too much was going on in Kurt's mind. He was having a hard time focusing on the main issue at hand. What was he going to do in terms of school? The next day was Friday. He would have to attend school for one day as the demonic figure he felt he was and then have the entire weekend to panic about Monday. Kurt continued to stare into the lacquered sky. So much was crowding his mind but he knew he had to make a decision soon.

_There is no way I could go back to school. And Rogue is wrong. I could live back in Germany and be fine… but if I don't go back… then all my friends are doomed to do the same thing. Go back to their parents and live with them because they can't go to school… No, they could enroll in a high school there and get an education._

Kurt thought that was the most plausible outcome to this impasse until he felt that little twist in his gut.

_But then that means they leave each other… the professor… and the institute. _

Kurt closed his eyes and teleported to his bed. He lied on his back putting his hands behind his head and stared at the ceiling, his mind racing all the while, thinking and rethinking any possible decision and its outcome.

_If I go to school then who knows what will happen? If I don't go to school then everyone else is expellled and if that happens then they'll have to leave the institute if they want to finish high school...If they have to leave the professor then they will be overwhelmed in terms of their powers... And Kitty… what will she do? _

Kurt laid there in a pool of thoughts for what seemed like hours. Finally he had reached a verdict. Although it wouldn't be the happiest result, it was the only one that had even the slightest bit of optimism in the final outcome.

Kurt took a deep breath and turned out his lamp. Not even bothering to change his clothes, he fell asleep with thoughts pouring into his mind about what the next day would bring.

***

The next morning Kitty was curled up in her bed staring at the glowing red numbers on her clock. She had hardly slept and found herself counting down the minutes until her alarm would go off.

_I could probably just stay in bed. I'm not even going to school today anyway._

The clock finally reached 6:30am and the maddening beep of her clock sounded through the bedroom. Kitty reached over and gently pushed her finger down on the "off" button. When Rogue and Kitty became roommates, Rogue insisted that Kitty had the alarm clock closest to her. Rogue pushed her black comforter off her bed, sat up and rubbed her eyes.

"Do you know what we're supposed to do today?"

Kitty was so zoned out that it took her a moment to realize Rogue was speaking to her.

"Oh, I don't know."

Rogue cocked her head.

"Are you going to be okay?"

"Yeah I'll be fine."

"Well I'm going to go figure out what's going on. I'll be right back."

Kitty slid up and rested her elbow on her knee and ran her fingers through her hair. She could hear some talking out in the hall. More kids must have been up as well.

_Please Kurt, don't do it. _

Kitty sat in her bed and stared at the rumples of her pink comforter mindlessly creating shapes in her head. It passed the time as Kitty fell into a stupor and forgot about everything that was going on. Almost a half an hour later, Rogue entered the room bringing Kitty back to reality.

"What's going on?" Kitty asked.

Rogue had a look on her face that was a combination of confusion and anger as she walked towards her dresser.

"Get ready."

"Get ready? Get ready for what?"

Kitty was scared. 'Get ready' could have meant so many different things at that point.

"For school."

Kitty's jaw dropped and she furrowed her eyebrows. She felt like a little kid being told they have to go to school on a snow day.

"We're going to school? What about Kurt? Is he alright?"

Rogue was sifting through her drawers putting together an outfit for the day. She looked like she was preparing for a funeral because of her usual gothic attire, but Kitty was the one who felt like she was going to one.

"Put it this way, he's sitting at the kitchen table eating breakfast."

Kitty didn't say anything. Her mind was a flurry of negative emotions. She sat up straight, sunk through the bedroom floor, silently landed in the library and walked towards the kitchen with moderate serenity considering her blood was boiling. Kitty was furious with Kurt. She could feel her face getting hot and her hands turned white as she clenched her fists.

_The second I see him, I am going to get right in his face and scream! _

She had marched her way through the mansion's main level. Her breathing was becoming loud and her lip was jutted out in pure anger.

_What the hell does he think he's doing? He's going to be more scared of me when I get through with him than those idiots at school!_

Kitty got closer to the kitchen's entrance. Her anger accelerating with every step she took. But when she found herself standing in the doorway, all her anger melted away.

There was Kurt, sitting at the kitchen table looking quite calm eating some cereal. He didn't notice her presence, or he was just ignoring it.

Kitty bit her lip and stared at her friend. Kurt was seated so that his back was facing her and sure enough, his watch was not on his wrist. He was already dressed wearing a light green golf shirt with thin, royal blue, horizontal stripes that was a nice colour combination against his navy blue fur, and a pair of nice, light blue jeans with a hole cut out for his tail. Kitty was used to seeing him dressed nicely for school, but not as his blue self.

She cleared her throat and knocked on the wall.

"Kurt, can I talk to you for a sec?"

Kurt turned around with the utmost innocence as he saw who was accompanying him in the kitchen. His throat felt like it was clogged up and his heart started to flutter as well as his tail. But he was quick to force it to wrap around the leg of the chair.

"Yeah, come in." Kurt's tone was surprisingly normal.

Kitty wrapped her hands around her elbows and walked over to the kitchen table and plopped down in the seat next to him letting her hands fall into her lap.

Kurt was feeling a variety of emotions. His mind was an unappetizing mixture of apprehension about his decision to return to school and interest as he realized Kitty was in her pajamas. The second thought made Kurt feel slightly embarrassed but relieved that the blood rushing to his face was hidden by most of his fur.

"What the hell do you think you're doing? Why are you going back to school?"

Kurt looked right into the endless blue fountain that was Kitty's eyes as he swallowed a big mouthful of cereal. Her eyes looked tired and heavy with worry written all over her face.

_Looks like I'm not the only one who didn't sleep last night._

Kurt stared down as he stick handled the cereal that floated in his bowl. He knew he was going to have a hard time explaining things right to Kitty's face.

"I don't want to hide anymore."

Kitty bit her bottom lip but kept the composure on her face.

"I hid from everyone when I was in Germany, I hid at school, the mansion, and I even hid from… Yeah I'm just tired of hiding. I want to face the world as me…"

"Who else did you hide from?"

Kurt looked back at Kitty.

"What?"

"You said you even hid from… then you trailed off."

Kurt hadn't even realized he had said that out loud.

"Oh, I don't know. I was just about to ramble but I stopped myself."

"Oh…"

Kurt turned his attention back to his bowl of now soggy cereal. The two of them sat in a painful silence. Both lost in their own thoughts.

"People are going to freak out, you know. Aren't you thinking about that?"

"Yeah, I know. I'm not looking forward to that part." Kurt halfheartedly chuckled.

"Then why are you doing it?"

Kurt looked back at Kitty and took a deep breath.

"Because I want to graduate… and I want you guys to graduate too. How is it going to get any better? What if I went somewhere far for university and I was exposed there? It'd be so much worse there than in high school. At least here the school knows a whole bunch of mutants live in this town."

Kitty knew Kurt had a point. What if he was exposed by accident? He wouldn't be able to have a roommate and if he put in a special request for a single room it wouldn't mean he would be given it. And finding a place where he could live by himself would be next to impossible. And what if his watch gave out during a lecture with hundreds of eye witnesses?

"What if you just stayed here? You don't have to go to university, you know."

"What?"

"Well you could stay here and the professor could school you…"

"Kitty, I know what you're trying to do and I appreciate it. But I've made my decision. I'm done hiding from the world. This may be my only chance to 'get over' what I have to live with. I'm going to school today and you can't change my mind."

Kitty threw her head back in an attempt to reverse the flow of the inevitable tears welling in her eyes.

"Then I better get dressed…" Kitty said as she looked away and stood up. "I'll see you at school."

Kurt leaned his head on his fist while he stared at his cereal which seemed oddly interesting that morning. He was lost in a daze just staring and thinking until a deep voice brought him back to the unfortunate reality.

"G'morning elf."

Kurt watched Logan walk towards the coffee pot and then returned his gaze to the table. Usually the playful nickname rolled right off Kurt's shoulders but that morning he really analyzed it.

_Elves aren't usually confused with a demon._

"Hey."

"So you're going to school I take it?"

Kurt didn't say anything as Logan sat down at the head of the table to Kurt's right.

"You know, I gotta say, I'm proud of you, kid."

Kurt felt like he had just been brutally awakened from a deep sleep. Did Logan just say he was proud of him? Again, he said nothing, but looked over to Logan.

"I don't think there's one kid in this entire place that would do what you're going to do." Logan said as he stood up. "Don't even think I could…"

Kurt looked back down as Logan walked out of the room.

_Nah… he's just trying to give me some encouragement… _

Kurt cleared the table and mindlessly headed towards the garage. He wasn't in too much of the mood to teleport unless he absolutely needed to.

Kurt opened the driver door of the van with his left hand and looked down at the bare wrist. He thought about how unusual it would be to go out in public without his watch then climbed in. He sat for a minute and sighed before putting the keys in the ignition. He put his hands and his head on the steering wheel and stared down. The whole morning was very unusual in a trivial kind of way. He didn't realize how one accessory changed his whole morning routine for getting ready for school. Kurt lifted his head to the sound of the passenger door opening.

"Mind if I catch a ride?" Scott asked as he sat in down in the passenger seat and fastened his seatbelt. "I mean, you _do _owe me a ride after all the times I've driven you to school."

Kurt halfheartedly smiled over at Scott and turned the keys in the ignition.

"I guess I do owe you a ride." Kurt smiled. It was the only thing someone had said to him that didn't remind him of what he was going to be faced with that day.

The morning was very promising, in terms of weather. As they drove down the driveway, Scott broke the idea of not talking about the day ahead, but Kurt felt more comfortable talking to Scott than anyone else who tried to that morning. If there was one thing you could say about Scott was that he was reliable.

"Kurt, I want you to know, nothing is going to happen to you today. I know Principal Kelly has something up his sleeve, and I know the Brotherhood is going to try and cause trouble, but I won't let it happen. Do you hear me?"

"I know." Kurt said as he stared straight ahead. He knew Scott was right about the Brotherhood and Principal Kelly. More questions started brewing in the back of his mind.

Did Mystique ever speak with Principal Kelly? Could he convince Professor Xavier to use Cerebro to get a hold of her?

Kurt pulled up to a traffic light beside a white SUV. As he was concentrating on his driving he somewhat forgot about his appearance. He casually looked over to the man driving the SUV. The man glanced over and then took a second look with shock written all over his expression. Kurt quickly turned his head to the other direction.

"Better get used to it. School's going to be worse."

_Nothing gets past that kid._

"Yeah, I guess I was kind of hoping the stares would just stay in the school though."

"Just ignore the stares and try to keep your cool when someone makes a remark."

The man was still gawking at Kurt, unsure of what he was looking at. When the light turned green, Kurt sped away leaving the man far behind. The school was just on the horizon. Kurt became panic stricken as second thoughts invaded his mind. Once he caught sight of the school, he knew his worst nightmare was becoming a reality. Kurt pulled the van over onto the shoulder of the road and cut the engine.

"I don't want to do this."

"Hey, calm down... I'm sorry but, I'm not going to sit here and tell you people won't freak out, because they will, but don't let it get to you. I just ignore it."

"That's easy for you to say! You just have those shades! We're talking about a whole body for people to stare at!"

"Kurt, none of us chose this. If those kids can't see that, then they're not worth worrying about."

"_Who would choose this? It's like a Halloween costume I can't take off."_ Kurt muttered in German. Scott was thrown back for a second. He often forgot English was Kurt's second language.

"Just ignore everything they say."

"I don't care what they say to me. I've heard it all and I'm sure I've thought of worse insults than they will. It's what I feel like they're going to do to me physically!"

"What do you mean?"

Kurt didn't reply. Very little was disclosed to the students at the institute about Kurt's past. Only what he chose to talk about was what most of the students knew, other than the professor and Rogue, no one knew much about what happened to Kurt in Germany.

"Teachers are going to be there…they're not going to let anyone lay a hand on you."

"Somehow I don't think the teachers will be much different than the students today. And even if one of you guys try to stand up to a teacher, they'll exaggerate everything to whoever is in charge of mutant affairs and who do you think they're going to believe?"

"The professor won't allow it."

Kurt put his fuzzy palms on the back of his neck then looked back over at the school as Scott put his hand on Kurt's shoulder.

"Kurt, I know you can do it."

"Why are you the only person who wants me to go back to school?"

Scott paused. "Everyone else is just looking out for you. They're just afraid for you. Let them be. It's better than them being afraid _of_ you."

_Yup, he's the leader for a reason._

"And hey, you can just port out of there if you start feeling really crappy. The mansion is in your distance, isn't it?"

"Then I'm just running away from it, like I always have…"

"Then this time, don't."

The two of them sat there for a minute as Kurt thought over what Scott said. Then Kurt turned the keys and the van roared to life. Neither of the two boys said a word as they pulled back onto the main road and headed to the school's parking lot. The one thing Kurt had dreaded since he came to America was finally happening.

The lawn in front of the parking lot was the hangout spot before classes. As Kurt pulled in, it took a moment but not long enough, all the faces turned to him. Through the windshield they all bore witness to Kurt's blue face. There were many different reactions. Some responded with fear, disgust, confusion, and laughter. The only thing all the reactions had in common was the effect it had on Kurt.

He quickly looked away as he caught a young freshman girl's eye.

"Scott, I want to go home. This was a bad idea." Kurt mumbled as he looked down.

Scott put his hand on Kurt's shoulder again.

"Hey, ignore it. I know it's hard but this is a big stepping stone in your life. You can do it."

"You don't know _how_ difficult it is…"

"You can leave if you really want to."

Kurt could hear the chattering outside of the van begin to silence as a fair number of the student body ogled the blue mutant. Kurt could feel their eyes staring at him and they could only see his head. He felt like someone was repeatedly punching him in the chest. At that moment he would have given anything to be back in his little bedroom in Germany reading a book with only his family knowing of his existence. He was ready to teleport back to the mansion, pack his things and head to Germany but something hit him. He remembered what he and Rogue had talked about the night before. He was going to hide from his problems like he always tried to do. An X-man would know better than anyone else how cowardly it looks when someone runs away from a scene and Kurt was going to do just that.

"No." Kurt said, shifting his eyes to look out the window, keeping his head down. All those eyes were ridden with scrutiny and fear and that was just a handful of students who happened to be around at the time.

"No?"

"I want to do this. I need to."

"Do whatever you feel is right."

Scott grabbed his backpack from his feet and opened the van door. Kurt quickly put his hand on Scott's wrist and looked up.

"Wait for me. I don't want to go by myself."

Scott didn't say anything but gave his friend an unspoken response and closed the door. They waited there in the van and more students seemed to join the crowd. Kurt could hear some people's comments.

"What is going on?"

"That blue mutant freak kid is back."

"Are all the mutants really like that?"

"No, I don't even think it's a mutant. It's got to be something worse."

"It's a science experiment gone wrong!"

Kurt closed his eyes and bit his lip.

_Pretend it's a dream. Pretend it's a dream._

He shifted his eyes up as Jean pulled up with the other Xavier students in Scott's car. Kurt saw this as the perfect chance for the other students to make the mob that surrounded the van back off somewhat. And that seemed to be the thing on Jean's mind as well.

"What the hell are you guys looking at?" Evan yelled as he jumped out of the car. "This isn't a friggin' circus!"

"Could've fooled me"

"Do you people have no shame?" Jean said in the tone of a disappointed teacher.

Kitty couldn't think of anything to say.

"Just move on to your classes that I'm sure you're failing!" Rogue shouted as she made her way to the van and tapped on the window of the sliding door. Kurt unlocked it and she climbed in and slammed the door behind her.

"How are you holding up?"

"Oh, I'm just fantastic, Rogue! Never better!"

"Shut up. How long have you guys been sitting here?"

"I don't even know... long enough for people to form an audience."

"Are you _actually_ going to go through with this?"

"I'm not so sure anymore… I can't even think of the words to say right now."

"No one is going to make you do anything you don't want to." Rogue soothed.

"The weird thing is I think I want to do it… I was thinking about what you said last night, Rogue, and I don't want to hide anymore. I want people to know who I really am but I just don't know about school… Ugh, I don't even know what I want anymore."

"You made it this far," Scott spoke up, "you might as well take the next step."

"Yeah, come on, we'll all go in together." Rogue put her hands on Kurt's shoulders and they sat again for a moment in silence.

Kurt took a deep breath and nodded.

Rogue stepped out of the car, followed by Scott who walked around the front, giving the human students scornful looks. Kurt took his sweet time. He felt like it took all of his energy to open the driver seat door. He sat with the door open and took in the gasps of the few remaining students that had surrounded the van.

The Xavier students walked to Kurt's aid and surrounded him, making somewhat of a barricade as he got out of the van. First he stepped one bare fuzzy foot on the pavement followed by the other. Murmurs and different feelings were being passed amongst the human population that surrounded the X-men. Kurt was out of the car and his tail was waving around frantically behind him. He caught a glimpse of the student's faces as they watched him. Some people had seen him when he was revealed in the cafeteria and some only heard about it from friends. There was nothing that could describe the horrible feeling he had in his stomach, the nervousness and embarrassment was almost unbearable, but it got worse when his tail, in its frantic spasm, hit the horn on the steering wheel letting out an abrupt beep. The human students laughed, and more negative attention was put on Kurt as he dragged the rest of his body out to the parking lot all the while keeping his head down. If he couldn't hide his body, then he'd hide his face.

"Shut up!" Rogue snapped at the smirking students.

Kurt felt like he was part of some kind of movie. His friends continued to walk with him as he made his way towards the school. The human students parted for them like Moses and the Red Sea. Were they being kind? Probably not. Kurt figured it was fear of touching him or seeing him up close. Then he thought to himself.

_Is it better to be feared or laughed at?_

Unfortunately for Kurt, it was both.

Kurt was walking as slow as he could but knew it was doing him more harm as it gave the human populace more time to gawk. But if he walked fast, it would just mean more people would see him. Kurt kept his dead man walking pace as he reached the giant cement steps leading up to the school's main entrance. He looked up slowly knowing what inside would hold.

**I'm sorry for taking a thousand years to put this up. I'm super busy haha. I didn't want to leave you guys hanging before Kurt actually goes to school, but it looks like I'm going to have to and I know it feels like I'm dragging it out. A lot of people have been e-mailing me about when the next chapter would be put up haha, and I feel bad taking forever and I feel bad leaving you guys hanging, but I chose the lesser of two evils. I'm hoping this summer I'll work on it a lot more. Thanks so much for your enthusiasm and support while I've been writing :)**


	8. Chapter 8

**WOW I feel like a jerk taking so long. Super busy and I fell out of interest for a bit then got back into it stronger than ever! Here's Chapter 8! Hope you like it! Sorry for the MASSIVE delay! I wrote a bit a while back but it wasn't done so I didn't upload it, but now this chapter is done! **

Chapter 8:

Kurt knew this was going to be quite the experience. He felt more out of place than any possible analogy could compare him to. The X-students walked up the cement steps helping Kurt the whole way like an injured teammate. Stares and unspeakable comments followed behind as every step he took gave way to more annotations and spectators. Different waves of feelings overcame his thoughts. Ashamed of who and what he was, embarrassed to have his friends aiding him so closely, and annoyed at the display of ignorance by his peers.

Walking down the hall seemed to have gone by in slow motion. Students stood by their lockers as the Xavier students made their way through the crowd. Scott and Jean lead as Rogue and Evan stood at either side of Kurt and Kitty kept the rear. Kurt looked up to the cluster of lockers where his stood as well as a group of familiar mutants.

_Did they really need to follow me all the way to my locker?_

"What the hell are you staring at?" seemed to be Rogue's choice of words that morning.

"Well I'm not really sure. I see four mutants, a skunk and… I'm not too sure what that blue thing in the middle is." Pietro jeered.

"This is your entire fault, you know!"

"Oh, I see little Kitty-cat has a bit of a temper. And I'm pretty sure it's not my fault. I'm not the one who gave birth to a blue devil. No matter. I'm not too bothered by all of this anyway. Not to mention that your attempt at intimidation is about as effective as that stupid inducer of blue boy's."

Kitty was getting all riled up and let Pietro know it, just adding more fuel to the fire. She clenched the straps of her backpack and pouted. Her baby like features made her look like a little kid about to throw a tantrum.

"Oh, she's gonna blow!" Fred jested.

"Leave her alone." Kurt stated quietly, gesturing towards Kitty.

Kitty was shocked that of any day in Kurt's life for him to be sticking up for someone else, he did, and for her no less. She felt sick in the stomach and embarrassed that in Kurt's most vulnerable state, he stood up for her.

"Or what?" Todd asked.

It didn't take long for Pietro to chime in. "I'd be careful with what you say, Toad. Wouldn't want him to sick one of his little hellhound friends on you."

Kurt's expression grew cold as he gritted his teeth.

"If he is considered a demon, then what does that make you?" Scott interjected.

"Um, I'd say I'm closer to being a human being than he could ever dream to be. Do you honestly think I care what you think, Summers?"

"Obviously not or else you'd know better."

Pietro's attention was taken off the little verbal skirmish as a swarm of students began to form but keeping their distance. He smirked.

"I'm done here. I need to save my good material." He snapped his fingers and the Brotherhood group moved down the hall as students backed out of their way just in time for the first bell to ring.

"Well, this is it buddy. Are you going to be alright on your own?" Evan put his hand on Kurt's shoulder.

"Don't really have a choice do I?"

"You made your choice, remember?" Rogue wrapped her arm on Kurt's other shoulder.

"I'm starting to wonder if it was the right one."

"Hey, no matter what happens today, you've already gone further than any of us would."

"Thanks Rogue." Kurt reached for his locker and let out a little chuckle.

"What's so funny?" Kitty asked.

"I never thought I'd see my _real_ hands opening a combination lock at school."

The Xavier students exchanged confused glances. Not sure whether to laugh or not. Jean was about to speak then stopped as the morning announcements began to sound through the hallway.

"_Kurt Wagner to the main office please."_

"Are you kidding me?" Kurt threw his head back and let out an exasperated sigh.

"I'll go with you." Jean put her hand on Kurt's. He looked back up at her and suddenly felt calm as she smiled a hopeful smile.

"Thanks, Jean."

Kitty felt a ping of jealousy.

"I can come too..."

"_I've got first period spare. Also, I was hoping to get a mental reading on Principal Kelly. 'See if he's got something up his sleeve."_ Jean's voice reverberated in Kitty's head.

"_Oh… Okay."_

"_Don't worry, you'll get your turn."_

Kitty could almost see the wink in the tone of Jean's mental voice and blushed.

"Thanks, Jean. But I can go by myself, really." Kurt reluctantly mumbled.

"Well too bad." She smiled.

Kurt twitched a faint smile and grabbed his books and slammed his locker door. For a second the common banter between friends took him away from his current reality. It was as if the whole world was intentionally trying to make him walk around in public as much as possible. More walking through the halls meant more gawks and stares.

_Well in about an hour everyone will have got a glimpse at the freak. _

"_Now you know how the Mona Lisa feels with people scrambling to get a good look every day."_

"_Jean!"_

Jean smiled. "I'm sorry, just trying to lighten the mood."

"How long were you _listening _for?"

"I've got selective _hearing_ for those kinds of things."

They exchanged smiles as Jean opened the door for Kurt while giving disappointed stares to spectators. The secretary's office was a fishbowl cramped with an over cluttered desk, three wooden armchairs and a side table complete with two large windows for passersby to gawk at students waiting to see the principal. As Kurt entered the office he caught the scent of Mrs. Harris, the school secretary's, perfume. She was a short, plump woman in her mid to late forties with a pleasant face and short blonde hair. She looked up at the door over her glasses. Kurt cocked his jaw and sucked in his bottom lip expecting a gasp and a clutch at her heart, but was pleasantly surprised.

"Good morning. Just have a seat." She said with a genuine smile. No fear whatsoever.

Kurt quietly set his books on the floor and sat down, pulling one knee up close to his chest.

"Jean, do you not have a class, honey?"

"I have a spare but I just wanted to make sure he got here alright."

"Jean, you can go." Kurt muttered.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'll be fine." Kurt whispered like a child urging for their mother to leave.

"Okay. See you in a bit." Jean close mouthed smiled and walked out.

Kurt watched her head down the hallway then found his gaze met with Mrs. Harris who was smiling at him with an almost maternal expression. Mrs. Harris' muted blue eyes sparkled with a content look before turning to irritation as she looked towards the window and stood up.

Kurt slowly turned his head towards the window as Mrs. Harris made her way over before noticing four teenage boys staring and laughing through the window. Kurt looked away and put his elbow on his raised knee whilst covering his face with his hand like a celebrity avoiding paparazzi. He was getting more aggravated now rather than depressed.

"Stupid kids. They have no respect." She muttered as she shut the blinds. "They're going to end up sweeping the floor of those halls one day. It's all they'll amount to."

Kurt smiled to himself and had a brief moment of satisfaction. Just as Mrs. Harris was about to speak, the second bell rang, indicating students to already be in class. As it ended, the door creaked open as Principal Kelly stood in the doorway.

"Ah, Kurt, I'm glad you decided to come to school today. Please step into my office."

Kurt stood up, tucked some hair behind his pointed ear, and smiled weakly at Mrs. Harris as he entered Kelly's office.

"Close the door behind you, please." Kelly said as he made his way behind his desk.

Kurt complied.

"So..." Principal Kelly smiled slyly as he motioned for Kurt to take a seat.

"I'll stand."

"Very well. I called you in to see if you actually came to school today or not and I'm surprised to see you turned up. Good for you."

"Is that all you wanted me for?"

"Not completely, Kurt. I want you to know that I expect this to be a permanent decision. Not just in high school, but for post secondary as well. Don't think that you can finish these last months and go back to living the little lie you fooled us all with. Fellow students will recognize you and most likely notify proper authorities and they might not be so forgiving."

Kurt idly stared right back at him not saying a word.

"So, as some incentive to get through this first day, I would like you to report back to my office at the end of each class to prove to me that you went."

Kurt took a deep breath and let his stare fall to the floor.

"And if you fail to do this, then the other offer still stands."

"Which offer?" Kurt jerked his gaze back to Mr. Kelly.

"The one where Xavier's other students, along with you, will be expelled from Bayville High"

Kurt stared daggers back. His embarrassment and hatred for himself was quickly growing more and more into annoyance and frustration with the ignorant people of the school.

"Do we have an agreement?"

Kurt said nothing, he just stared back at Kelly and bit the inside of his cheeks.

"Did you hear me?" His voice filled with condescension.

"…Yes." He gritted.

"Excellent, so I will see you after first period. I believe that is with Mr. Butler. See you in an hour."

Kurt wasted no time exiting Principal Kelly's office. The other students would already be at their desks beginning class. Kurt would have to walk into the room and interrupt the lesson which was awkward even for someone like Duncan Matthews.

As he heatedly rushed through the secretary's office, Mrs. Harris came trundling out from behind her desk.

"Oh sweetie, you forgot your books."

"Oh, thank you."

Kurt reached for his books and Mrs. Harris looked affectionately at Kurt's outstretched hand, particularly focusing on his three fingers.

"See you after first period, hon." She smiled.

Kurt smiled back. Having just one person at the school, even if it was a staff member look at him without any fear or reluctance gave him the faintest glimmer of hope that he might be able to get through the day.

**As a bonus for being an asshole and taking the world record for longest update gaps, chapter 9 is up!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9:**

**Like I said, as a treat for waiting forever, here's chapter 9! I hope I don't disappoint! I don't know what your expectations were after taking so long but I hope that you guys are happy! I'm getting back into this story and I'm so glad! Warning, there's a moment in here that might offend some people. It deals with racial bullying. I am NOT a racist by any means but I thought it would be an interesting concept to bring into a story about mutants! Again, my intention is NOT to offend anyone. Someone had brought it up at Halloween (I was Nightcrawler for Halloween this past year) and I thought it was kind of interesting. I'm accepting of EVERYONE especially blue mutants with tails and pointy ears. ;) **

Kurt walked out into the hallway and stood outside the office door for a moment, collecting himself. This wasn't going to be any easier than anything else he had encountered that morning. He felt as if he was counting the tiles on the floor for an hour before he felt someone staring at him. It was Jean.

"So what's the story?"

"Don't act like you don't know. Principal Kelly wants me to come back with a _report_ after all my classes to prove I went."

"Oh…"

"I don't understand why the teachers can't just call him! He's doing it to screw with me!"

"Kurt, he probably just…"

"He's doing it to humiliate me! To walk from every class to the office and back I'm forced to walk in while everybody is already sitting down and to have to rush through a crowded hallway back and forth."

Jean knew this was what Principal Kelly intended. The entire Xavier Institute knew Principal Kelly was a member of the "anti-mutant committee" and any chance he had to make a mutant uncomfortable or humiliated, he'd take it.

"I'll walk with you to class."

Kurt took a deep breath and blew it out throwing his head back. "You don't have to do that."

"I want to."

Kurt gave an unspoken response. The two walked beside each other in silence to Mr. Butler's English class. As they approached the door, Kurt peaked through the long narrow window. All the students were seated at their desks facing the whiteboard with their backs to the door. Mr. Butler stood at the front of the class writing notes. Kurt knew that whenever someone so much as knocked on the door that everyone would turn to stare. At least when he came in late with his inducer everyone stared then went back to their work. How would they react when he walked in now?

"Kurt, I know everyone's been telling you this all day, and I don't need to read your mind to know that it's easier said than done; but just ignore it. In two months we won't even have to worry about seeing these people anymore. If they can't accept you then I don't know how they'll survive in the real world after high school."

Kurt said nothing. He stepped out of view of the door window in case the odd student with wandering eyes caught site of him.

"I'm not even so much embarrassed anymore, but mad. Why do people even care so much?

"That's quite the different view than what you had last night."

"I know… during my meeting with Principal Kelly I just hit a moment where I was looking at him and I thought to myself 'why do you even care'. He was telling me that he expected this to be a permanent decision to not rely on my inducer anymore and that people would recognize the 'fake' me if I used it."

"And?"

"Part of me agrees and part of me says that the professor can just change the holo-image to look like someone else."

"Kurt, you're just hiding again. When you wore your inducer before you looked like… well, a different version of you but you were still you. If the professor changes the image then you're just hiding even more."

Kurt put his hands on the back of his neck. "I know..." he stared for a moment and pulled his hands forward, "I don't know what I'll do after this... I need to take it one day at a time."

Kurt hovered his hand over the doorknob. He stretched out his fingers to open the door, only to hesitate and clench his hand. He took a deep breath. Jean squeezed Kurt's arm and gave him a gentle look.

"It's alright to be nervous." She smiled.

Kurt looked up at her and gave her a look of affirmation. "I know… I'll be fine…" Kurt closed his eyes and opened the door a crack. He turned to Jean and gave a weak smile. "See you at lunch." Kurt looked away and slowly opened the door the rest of the way.

The door creaked and Kurt stepped his furry foot into the classroom. As expected, the entire class turned to see who had come in late. Kurt gazed into the sea of mixed expressions by his peers. He avoided eye contact with anyone, shut the door behind him as quietly as he could and headed to his seat at the back of the room on the far side. As he walked towards his seat, he noticed that Mr. Butler had not even so much as acknowledged the fact that someone was joining class late, but he definitely noticed when the class fell into a fit of whispers.

As Kurt took his seat, he could feel all the eyes analyzing him; scrutinizing gawks and murmurs flooding the room all talking about the same thing. He set his books on the desk and slipped into his seat. Kurt grabbed his desk as if he were in a plane that was falling from the sky. He was sure that under his furry hand his knuckles would be white, or in his case a light blue. He tried his best to not make any form of eye contact with the students who had all turned to stare at him. The expression _they looked at me like I grew a second head_ had taken on a whole new meaning to him. To keep his mind off it he took out his notebook and made a feeble attempt to act _normal. _Mr. Butler turned around to lecture about the notes he had just written.

"So when I mentioned earlier…"

He noticed that he no longer held any glimmer of attention in his students as they all turned towards the blue mutant at the back of his classroom. Kurt held his breath, looked up and with the utmost humility and gave Mr. Butler a look of _well, here it is_. The rest of the class turned to see what the teacher's reaction to this was going to be. A brief silence that seemed like an eternity hushed over the room.

Mr. Butler very subtly cocked his head and smiled. "Welcome back, Kurt." He ended the gaze he had with Kurt and continued his lecture.

Kurt exhaled a minor sigh of relief. There was one teacher so far that he wouldn't have a hassle with. Any time a student would turn their head or to try and catch another glimpse at Kurt, Mr. Butler would say things like "this might be on the exam" or "I'm up here, please focus" to alleviate the mental pain that he imagined Kurt was feeling. After about fifteen minutes, Mr. Butler announced that they would be watching a made for T.V. movie of one the novels they were studying.

Mr. Butler turned off the lights and walked towards the TV at the front of the classroom."Now, don't think that you can just sit there and chat, take notes. There will be a question on the final."

Kurt understood that Mr. Butler had to be doing all of these class distractions on purpose. His respect for his teacher grew exponentially.

_Well if I'm in the dark then they can't see me as well._

The class fell silent for a moment as the opening credits flashed on the screen. Kurt knew this was going to be boring but decided to focus all of his attention on watching the movie, but he couldn't help but feel like the rest of the class was watching him. The credits had barely ended when a boy to his left scooted closer to Kurt.

"Hey." He whispered.

Kurt ignored him.

"Hey, I'm talking to you." The boy said as if Kurt had offended him.

Kurt knew this boy just from this class they shared together. His name was Connor. He was one of Duncan Matthew's friends. Short brown hair and average features.

Kurt turned his head to humour him. "What?" He asked in a very short impatient tone.

"Why are you like that?"

Kurt looked at him with irritation. The answer to this question was much deeper than Connor deserved. Kurt took a deep breath and bit the inside of his cheeks, almost to contain his anger.

"Dumbass, can't you hear me? I asked you a question."

Kurt put his hand up to his face with his thumb to his chin, his "index" finger to his temple and his other finger pressed against his lips.

"Is that you trying to flip me the bird? You realize you need more than three fingers to do that, right?" Connor laughed and held up his hand in attempt to hold his fingers together mimicking Kurt's.

This added more fuel to Kurt's anger. He tried to keep his composure as best as he could.

"Please, leave me alone." Kurt managed to quietly mumble.

"Sorry, what was that?"

Kurt ignored him again.

Connor reached forward to tap the boy's shoulder in front of him and whispered. "Hey, Eric…"

Eric turned around and gave Kurt a very smug look then laughed.

"Eric, this kid won't talk to me."

"Are you sure it even speaks English?"

"You know what, man? I'm not even sure. Have you ever heard him talk in this class before?"

"Isn't he German or some shit?"

"Hey Eric," Connor giggled to himself, "I always knew the devil was German."

Now Kurt was getting, for lack of a better word, pissed. Not only had they crossed a line everyone seemed to have no problem crossing about his appearance, but they made a racial slur against his ethnicity. If it were any other human student, surely this would classify as a hate crime. Kurt was not going to let this one go under the radar.

"What did you say?"

"Oh, so now you can hear me?"

"You can't say stuff like that." Kurt scolded.

The three boys had gathered more attention. Kurt knew they were all looking at him since he walked in, but now they were listening as well. Eric was trying to contain his laughter while Connor cocked his head sarcastically.

"And what are you going to do about it? You think anyone here will side with the likes of _you_" Connor gestured to Kurt. "I think the odds of you of ending up behind bars at a sideshow are higher than me getting in any trouble for anything I say to you. And you know what? You don't belong here. You're a freak, plain and simple."

Kurt had to maintain tranquility. Connor was going too far. He could feel his face getting flushed from his anger. This caused his eyes to flash that florescent yellow when he was upset. He heard a few hushed gasps, obviously students who had noticed the change as well. This caught Mr. Butler's attention.

"What's going on over there?" Mr. Butler perked his head up.

Connor put on an innocent tone. "Mr. Butler, I'm not sure what's going on, but his eyes started to change colour. I'm getting concerned."

"Yeah… me too, I don't feel safe with this mutant in our class." Eric feigned concern as well. "I feel like he might use his powers on us any minute now."

This was ridiculous. Kurt slammed his fists on his desks. "My powers can't even hurt you anyway!"

Anyone who was trying not to stare at Kurt was staring by now. Kurt didn't even care anymore. He wasn't going to let people push him around and make fun of his appearance anymore and they had crossed a line with jesting about his home country.

"You know what? Go ahead! Stare if you want to! I don't even care at this point! You're treating me like garbage just because of how I look! Do you honestly think I chose to look like this? When I was born do you think I said 'hey mom, can I have a tail and blue fur because I think that would be fun'? Because you know what, my own mother didn't want me and sometimes I think you people honestly think mutants choose to be mutants! It's not a choice! Do you choose your gender or your hair colour? No one in their right mind would choose this!" Kurt stood up and gestured to himself. "And if you people honestly can't understand that, then this stupid school isn't worth my time and effort. If any of you had to deal with half the stuff I have to deal with, you'd certainly agree with me… This is a waste of my time." At this point the burning in his eyes had moved to his stomach. He was so angry and fed up that he had no business left in that room.

With that, Kurt teleported out of the room, leaving behind his signature brimstone scent and the rest of the classroom waving their hands in front of their noses and coughing. Mr. Butler stood up from his desk in attempt to follow Kurt, but he was in somewhat of a state of shock as he didn't even know where Kurt went. All that was left was an empty seat and books on a desk. After a moment of regaining his equanimity, he motioned towards the boys at the back.

"Connor, Eric, get your things, we're taking a trip to Mr. Kelly's office."

The boys rolled their eyes but preserved their conceited smiles as they exited the classroom. The rest of the class was left with the malicious feeling of guilt and disgust in their mouths.

Mr. Butler walked the two boys down the hallway to Principal Kelly's office in silence. Once the boys were there, he searched the hallway to see where Kurt had "wandered" off to.

**Oh, but guess what! CHAPTER 10 IS ALMOST DONE TOO! OH HO HO YES IT IS!**


	10. Chapter 10

**I'M SORYY! EPIC FAIL ON MY PART! I apologize! I'm in my final year of university and it kind of crept up on me! I'm sorry! P.S. I don't know how your high schools work(ed) but where I went, we only had four periods that were 75 minutes each, so if you're confused about something later, now you know. Enjoy!**

Kurt had ported to the rooftop of the school. In his heated anger he had blindly teleported but his subconscious was strong enough to bring him someplace secluded within his range. As he "landed" he stumbled and lost his balance causing him to fall to the ground scraping his hand on the concrete to catch himself. Kurt slowly sat himself up and looked at his injured hand.

The palm of his hand was embedded with small stones; Kurt brushed them away along with some fur that had been skinned off revealing his blue skin and a few light drops of blood. Kurt closed his hand into a fist and put it up to his forehead, all the while feeling such contempt, no longer toward himself, but for the ignorance of his peers. He could feel his body slightly shuddering and twitching from the force of his rage. He had finally reached a point of realization that he wasn't ashamed of himself so much anymore, but that in a world that had evolved so much, he still felt unaccepted. He had to start accepting himself otherwise there was no way anyone else was going to. That morning was a huge stepping stone for him.

_No more hiding… no more wishing that I was something I'm not…_

Kurt sat by himself in the silence of the morning. He stared out into the landscape of trees and buildings, trying to contain his breathing to calm down.

Everything was still dewy and Kurt had noticed the rooftop he was sitting on was cool and damp. It gave him peace of mind, reminding him of the mundane things in life. He looked up to admire the spectacle of the morning. It was a beautiful day. The sun had just hit its morning peak giving everything in the distance a beautiful glow. A sweet warm breeze brushed through his fur. Kurt closed his eyes and embraced the fresh spring air. He could have stayed on that rooftop, losing himself in that morning forever. It was the first time he really had any alone time that day. When he was in the mansion he was constantly being bombarded by the other students and hearing their conversations through the walls. Kurt was totally alone in the spectacle of a simple spring morning. Taking a deep breath, Kurt found peace and tranquility. He just needed to get away from the stress.

_I think I'm ready to go back into the fire. _

Kurt smiled to himself. To him, going "back into the fire" could be construed as heading back into the fiery dimension he unintentionally passes through with every port. A slight inside joke he shared with himself. Kurt stood up and took one last look at the landscape of trees and surrounding buildings before teleporting back into the school.

Kurt had ported to a stall the men's washroom. At this point he had already made a scene in his class that if anyone caught him using his powers other than that incident, he didn't really care. Luckily there was no one in the washroom so Kurt was safe. He walked out and washed his hands, splashed cool water on his face and took a look in the mirror. He stared as the damp fur on his face darkened his "complexion". He grabbed a paper towel, wiped his hands and face and headed to the door. Once in the deserted hallway, Kurt looked left and right as if he was crossing a busy street.

Kurt headed to his locker. He wasn't really sure if he was going to return to class or not. There was at least twenty minutes left and he still needed to get some form of indication that he attended class.

"Scheisse…" He mumbled.

_Does what I did even count as going to class? Ugh, I have to get a signature from Mr. Butler._

That meant Kurt had to go back to his class after he had made such a dramatic exit; he absent mindedly continued down the hallway involuntarily heading to Mr. Butler's class. Naturally, Mr. Butler had given up on his search for Kurt and headed back to his classroom but not before seeing Kurt do the same thing.

"Kurt." Mr. Butler called out.

Kurt's head had been down and his hands in his pockets; at the sound of his name his head perked up. Mr. Butler put up his hand and jaunted towards him.

"Kurt, are you alright?"

Mr. Butler rarely showed any interest in his students whether they were learning English or not. Kurt was impressed.

"I'm fine... What happened to Eric and Connor?" Kurt replied coldly trying to keep his voice steady at the mention of the two boy's names.

"I took them to Principal Kelly's office, although I'm not sure it will do much good."

Kurt did not respond but cryptically kept his eyes glued to Mr. Butler's.

"Kurt, I'm not here to judge you, or any other 'gifted' student here. I knew you were a…" He trailed off.

"Mutant." Kurt finished.

Mr. Butler cleared his throat.

"It's okay, you can say it."

"Well, I knew you were… 'one' and it didn't faze me, but I must admit, I was mildly shocked when I saw you today."

Kurt cocked his head.

"I mean, the other day with the incident in the cafeteria, myself and the rest of the teachers were in the staff room. Not many of us saw what happened, we had only heard word being spread around, and obviously people will exaggerate anything if they have the chance."

Kurt shook his head, bit his lip and raised an eyebrow while letting out a quiet irritated laugh. "None of this surprises me. So did all the teachers have a little conversation about how the 'blue kid' might be coming back to school?"

Mr. Butler almost looked hurt. "No, not at all… well, I mean the teachers who are so set in their ways had some choice phrases, I can't deny that and you're not stupid so I know you know that was inevitable. But you'll be surprised at the level of support from some of the other staff members."

"What do you mean?"

"Kurt, what you did today took a lot of heart. I don't know too many people, including myself, who could have done any of the accomplishments in a year that you've achieved in just one period of the school day. Not to mention being revealed to the school as a mutant twice. And you're right. I will never know the stuff you've had to go through in your life and I'm twice your age, but the least I can do is give you the respect you deserve and not allow some ignorant students make you feel inferior for something completely out of your control."

Kurt was unsure of what to say back to his teacher. After what, to Kurt, seemed like hours of silence, Mr. Butler broke the awkward silence.

"You left your books in the classroom."

"Yeah, I was hoping to not have to go back in there after such a dramatic exit." Kurt joked.

"I'll go in and grab them." Mr. Butler smiled.

"Mr. Butler… I also need a favour."

"Sure."

Kurt twitched his mouth. "I need a signature to prove to Mr. Kelly that I went to class today. I need one from all my teachers."

"No problem at all." Mr. Butler smiled and headed back into the classroom and returned in no time with Kurt's books and a sheet of paper with his signature on it. As he handed the books to Kurt he shook his head. "I want to apologize on behalf of the staff members who do support you."

"What do you mean?"

"Like I said before, there are a lot of teachers who support you and there's some who obviously are offended by your presence at this school. Don't think we're all against you. I just wish that Principal Kelly was on the good side, and for that I'm sorry. Keep your chin up today and remember, in the words of Eleanor Roosevelt, 'no one can make you feel inferior without your consent'."

"Thank you." Kurt didn't know what to say. He was humbled by Mr. Butler's words but was unsure of an appropriate response. Kurt nodded and gave a closed mouth smile before heading towards the office.

Kurt walked towards Principal Kelly's office with a newfound sense of self-assurance. Going to that class and standing up to Connor and Eric instilled more confidence in himself. Kurt smirked to himself thinking about all the courageous accomplishments with his work as an X-man and yet standing up to a group of his peers reassured his confidence more.

Kurt hoped that the bell would not ring while he was still in the hallway, but that was a lost cause. The bell rang and before he could make his way to the office, he found himself in the middle of a sea of students. It was a repeat of the morning. Students stopped from their mindless commute to class to give Kurt a good stare. And much like the flow of the morning, Kurt was starting to not care and kept on walking with his mind and his gaze fixated on Principal Kelly's office. He could hear students making snide comments, and would fake a cough to cover up their use of the words "freak", "demon" and the like. Kurt picked up his pace and reached for the door to Principal Kelly's office.

As he opened the door, he was unaware of the force he must have used and barged right in, causing poor Mrs. Harris to jump in her seat.

"Oh! You scared the daylights out of me!" Mrs. Harris' face dropped when she saw that it was Kurt who had scared her. "No, sweetie I didn't mean it like that! I meant that you walked in so quickly and I wasn't expecting it."

Kurt smiled and let out a giggle at how thoughtful Mrs. Harris was being.

"It's alright. I knew that's what you meant."

"Oh… good. I didn't want you to think…" she trailed off then smiled. "Are you here to show Principal Kelly Mr. Butler's signature?"

Kurt awkwardly smiled and handed the signature to Mrs. Harris.

"Alrighty, let me just go get him, okay?" The chair squeaked as she got up to knock on Principal Kelly's door.

When the door opened, Connor and Eric walked out followed by Principal Kelly who stood in the doorframe. Connor and Eric giggled to each other as they passed by Kurt and exited the office. Principal Kelly looked at Kurt and gave a patronizing look of approval and fake surprise. "Good to see you went to class. See you after second period." He took the paper with the signature and closed the door.

"You'd better get to class before second bell." Mrs. Harris urged but not without a caring smile.

Kurt nodded and headed to the door, making sure to close it gently behind him. As he entered the hallway, he stopped and looked out into the hall. To his left, in the herd of high school students, Kurt spotted Kitty waving her arm for Kurt's attention.

"Hey!" She called out as she jogged down the hall, "how was first period?"

Kurt shrugged. "Alright."

Kitty could tell that Kurt obviously didn't want to elaborate, but she wasn't going to let him suppress anything. "So nothing bad happened, whatsoever?"

Kurt looked down the hall and noticed some more students staring at him as they passed by. "It was fine."

Kitty raised a brow.

Kurt threw his head back and let out a deep sigh. "It was different, let's put it that way… Kitty, I've got to get to class. I still have to get to my locker. I'll talk to you at lunch."

Kitty nodded and bit her lip before leaving Kurt to go to her own class.

What Mr. Butler had said echoed through Kurt's mind as he headed to his second period class. More teachers were on his side than he initially thought. Kurt hoped that the same went for some of his peers. It was evident that Mrs. Harris was one of the supportive staff members but Kurt was beginning to wonder if his second period teacher, Miss. Clement, would be on the negative or positive side. He seemed to be running into more of the latter so he was due for some discrimination from a teacher. She was known to be strict in general when she didn't have a blue mutant in her class.

Kurt turned and with his head down, headed to his second period class, physics. Luckily it was just down the hall from the office, so his journey would be a short one. He passed through the crowded hallway but unlike other days, brushing up against people to get where he needed to go, there seemed to be space for him to move through. Students would move out of the way so that Kurt could walk by. As annoying as it was to constantly bump into people in the hall, Kurt almost longed for it to eradicate the reminder that he was an outcast and that no one wanted to make contact with him.

As he approached the door, he could see Miss. Clement writing on the whiteboard. Kurt walked in only to stop at the front of the class in exasperation. His usual seat was among of the cluster of desks. If he took his usual seat then he would be surrounded by students who hated and feared him. However, if he were to go to a more secluded seat, he would inevitably be taking the usual desk of a human student, and with his luck, it would be a student who would make a scene. Kurt reluctantly chose his typical desk and sat down and quietly set his books down. Only a few students were seated as the rest followed in. The seated students stopped their conversations to stare at Kurt. Two girls, who were gossiping before, stopped their chatter to stare at Kurt. One of them looked as if she was trying to hold in a laugh, while the other looked on in disgust. The second bell rang and Kurt opened his notebook and started to copy what Miss. Clement had written on the whiteboard.

"Mr. Wagner…"

Kurt looked up to see Miss. Clement standing right in front of his desk. She was an extremely thin woman in her mid thirties. She had short stylish blonde hair with brown undertones and dark brown eyes.

"What do you think you're doing?" She talked down to him, tapping her dry erase marker on his desk.

Kurt looked to the other students in the room who were all seated and staring at him.

"I'm taking notes?" Kurt said in a quiet questioning tone.

"Well, don't you think you ought to wait until the lesson begins?"

Kurt expected behavior like this from a few students and teachers that day, so this did not come as a surprise, but he complied. "Well, I organize my notes this way. It's how I learn."

Miss. Clement pursed her lips and raised her eyebrows. "Well, if it were up to me, you wouldn't be learning at all… Just be glad I'm gracious enough to let you stay in this class for the rest of the semester. Don't fall behind because I don't have the time to teach you outside of class." She turned around and made her way to the front of the room to begin her lesson. As she began teaching, she would use different coloured markers to make her point. "This red marker represents the potential energy, and the green represents the kinetic energy…"

"Does _blue_ represent negative energy?" A boy called out sending the class in a fit of giggles.

Miss. Clement gave a vindictive laugh and smiled at Kurt. "In some cases it could..." She smirked at Kurt. "Anyway, moving on…"

Kurt stared daggers at Miss. Clement. He knew making a scene like he did in the class before would not fly as well in this class and he did not want to jeopardize his graduation as well as the other Xavier student's, so he sat in silence taking the verbal abuse.

"Okay, here are some questions I want you to answer for homework and hand them in tomorrow. The rest of the class is a work period." Miss. Clement walked to her desk at the back of the classroom and as she passed Kurt's desk she snapped her fingers at him and beckoned for him to follow her, like a dog.

Kurt sighed and got up from his seat and headed to her desk. He could feel the other students watching, like small children when they are called to the principal.

"Can I help you?" Kurt asked very monotonous.

"I'm not sure, can you?" She replied sarcastically.

Kurt stood there, obviously not amused as he refused to make eye contact with Miss. Clement.

"Oh have a sense of humour. God must have when he made you."

Kurt was about to blow a gasket. He jerked his head to look right at Miss. Clement. He was about to snap again. That was definitely an inappropriate insult for a teacher to make towards a student. He could feel his face getting hot and the tip of his tail began to twitch. But then something else came over him. Although the urge to chew out Miss. Clement was overpowering, he decided a different approach.

"I've been told I'm quite the clown back at the mansion. God must have given me his sense of humour."

Miss. Clement was slightly taken aback. Kurt stood there with a grin on his face.

"Excuse me?" She said after a short pause.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you." Kurt said in fake concern. A few students within an earshot started to let out quiet chuckles. Kurt was unsure if they were laughing with him or at him, but he didn't care.

Miss. Clement looked at the surrounding students and leaned in towards Kurt. "I don't know who you're trying to impress, but I'm not going to have some…" she curled her lips inward and whispered, "_freak_ humiliate me in front of my class. Do I make myself clear?"

Kurt wanted to laugh. It was okay for her to scrutinize and single him out to the class, but heaven forbid he make her feel humiliated. "Alright, then what did you want me for?"

"I wanted to give you the work you missed the past couple of days, and I need a note as to why you were absent."

Kurt stared idly back at Miss. Clement as if to say _are you kidding me_. "What do you mean? The professor called and excused me from classes yesterday."

"That may be so, but now you're behind on your work, and I don't have time to re-teach the lesson you missed, so you'll have to figure it out on your own."

Kurt was beginning to understand what waiters and waitresses felt like when dealing with an unruly patron. _Kill them with kindness_ he thought. He looked at Miss. Clement and that new feeling overcame him.

"Oh, don't worry. I'll make sure I catch up. I understand that you're very, very busy."

A few other students started to giggle again as Kurt's tone dripped with sarcasm. This was turning out to be a good move for him. Kurt decided he was done talking with Miss. Clement.

"I'm going to go sit down now." He whispered. Kurt turned around and headed to his desk, noticing some more stares. He plopped down in his chair and opened his textbook to do some work. As much as Kurt hated physics, it obtained his attention long enough to forget he was sitting in a crowded classroom as his fuzzy blue self. The room was quiet except for some murmurs from the students and his tail sweeping along the tiled floor.

The murmurs came from two girls sitting diagonally from him. To a human student they were talking quietly enough that they would not have been heard, but due to Kurt's heightened hearing, he could hear their conversation as if he were a part of it.

"Do you think he's still classified as a mutant? I thought that they were just mutated on the inside not the outside."

"I'm not sure. Oh my god, you should totally ask him that! I dare you to."

"Oh my god, should I?"

"Yeah, that'd be hilarious. Did you hear him talking to Miss. Clement? She's totally P-O'd."

Kurt was in a cheeky mood. During his time up on the roof that morning he had time to evaluate his day and how he could approach this stepping stone in life. The past few days had been so melancholy for him and he was just tired of feeling sorry for himself, not to mention he felt a new sense of empowerment from standing up to Eric and Connor. If he allowed all these stupid remarks to get to him, then the ill-mannered students and teachers of the school would be winning. He grinned to himself at the ignorance of those two girls and decided he'd have a little fun.

"Hey…" He whispered to the girls.

They turned their heads and gave him a look as if he were a bug that needed to be squished. One of them answered. "What do you want?"

"I just thought I'd let you know that I'm not even exactly sure if I'm a mutant or not."

The girls exchanged skeptical glares, unsure of what to say as they realized Kurt had heard their entire conversation.

Kurt eventually assumed that they weren't going to talk so he kept going. "I mean, all the other mutants here look just like everyone else, but this is just what German mutants look like. It must be something in our water that causes mutations to be so much worse than North American mutations." He spoke to them so seriously that the two girls were both shocked and confused. Kurt gave them a nod of reassurance and then returned to his physics textbook. He could hear the girls whispering to each other again asking if the other believed what he had said. Kurt was feeling pretty impertinent. The hurt of the scrutiny he was receiving still lingered in his chest, but humour, being a quality he was known for and used to sparingly in the past few days, seemed like a good alternative than letting it get to him.

The rest of the class was relatively uneventful. Kurt was alright with that. Any level of normalcy was good enough for him. He could still feel stares and heard murmurs. That day, he embraced the mundane. Kurt glanced up at the clock and noticed there was only five minutes left of class, so he decided he'd better get a signature from Miss. Clement while there was still time, and maybe he'd have enough time to find a quiet place for lunch hour.

Kurt grabbed his things and ripped out a piece of paper from his notebook on his way to Miss. Clement's desk. As he approached the desk, Miss. Clement looked up from her work only for a second before turning back to grading papers.

"Shouldn't you be catching up on your homework?"

"Well I got a few of the questions done in class. I'll work on the rest tonight." Kurt watched Miss. Clement for a moment. She just continued to grade papers. He cleared his throat and handed the blank sheet of paper to her. "I need a signature from all my teachers to prove I went to class."

Miss. Clement waited until she finished grading the page she was on before giving Kurt any satisfaction of acknowledging him. She slapped her pen down, flipped her hair and looked up at him. "Why do you need a signature?"

Kurt took a deep breath. He had just told her why he needed a signature. "Principal Kelly wants me to get signatures from all my teachers as proof that I went to all my classes." The first bell rang and the rest of the class began to clear the room.

Miss. Clement looked at him carelessly, clearly thinking of some reason as to why she should refuse a signature. Kurt lived with enough telepaths to be able to read facial expressions pretty well. He watched as she twitched her mouth and squint her eyes before she snatched the blank page from his hand and scribbled her name in big cursive. She held out the page for Kurt to grab, not once looking back up at him.

"Thank you Miss. Clement. Have a good day." Kurt said with deliberate politeness as he turned for the door.

Any other day Kurt would have been glad that it was lunch hour. Usually he would make his way to the cafeteria and fill his bottomless stomach and get away from class for an hour, but that day was going to be different.

Kurt made his way back to Principal Kelly's office to hand in his scribbled signature from Miss. Clement. Again, much like the theme of the day, Kurt was met with stares, giggles and snide comments. He was almost getting used to it by that point. He walked into the office and was glad to see Mrs. Harris' face again.

"Miss. Clement's signature?" She chimed, looking at the page in Kurt's hand.

"Yeah…" Kurt muttered, handing the page to Mrs. Harris. "Did Principal Kelly need to see me before lunch hour or anything?" Kurt asked skeptically.

"Oh honey, I'm not sure. Let me just go and see." Mrs. Harris backed her chair up and shuffled to Principal Kelly's office door and quietly tapped on it. Kurt fidgeted while he waited for any response from Kelly's office. Mrs. Harris knocked again and Kurt took a breath when there was no answer. "He must have already left for lunch. If I were you I'd come back just before third period just in case. I can take the signature for you though." Mrs. Harris smiled.

Kurt hesitated for a minute, eyeing the signature in Mrs. Harris' hand. Her smile faded as she noticed Kurt's glance.

"Oh honey, don't worry. I'll make sure he gets it!"

Kurt nodded and headed for the hallway with unease. Somehow he felt in his heart that Principal Kelly and Miss. Clement would somehow conspire against him.

It was lunch hour. This was going to be undoubtedly the most difficult part of his day. He looked both ways before entering the sea of students in the hallway and headed to his locker.

**BOO URNS! I'm an idiot hahaha when I said chapter 10 was almost done, like forever ago, it pretty much was except for spelling and grammar checks and adding a few things here and there. I was going to make it longer but then realized how much was actually in this chapter already! SINCEREST APOLOGIES! I hope you're enjoying my story! Thank you for all your support!**


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